Due to the discovery of an unexploded ordnance from World War II, Osnabrück city in Lower Saxony, Germany, will conduct a new round of large-scale evacuation operations on July 1. The local government announced on the evening of June 30 that approximately 20,000 people are required to evacuate their areas by 3 p.m. on July 1.
The notice revealed that the unexploded ordnance was found at a construction site in the Loch district of Osnabrück city. The evacuation area includes the main railway station in the city center and several hospitals among other important public facilities. In response to this operation, the local government will establish an emergency shelter center at a school.
It is reported that just two weeks ago, a 500-kilogram unexploded ordnance weighing over 1.1 million people was discovered in the Loch district, causing about 11,000 people to temporarily evacuate and also affecting railway traffic. Previously, to deal with WWII-era bombs, the area organized detonation operations in November last year, February this year, and April this year.
The Osnabrück city government stated that due to historical reasons, the city is one of the cities in Germany with the highest number of WWII-era bombs, both in terms of total quantity and per capita ratio, ranking high. Currently, the city is planning and constructing a new urban area at the former site of the freight railway station, frequently discovering wartime explosive remnants. (CCTV Yu Jiawen)