Unexploded WWII Bomb Destroyed Overseas

(USNewsBreak.com) – Nearly a century has passed since the conclusion of World War II, but its echoes still reverberate globally through remembrance events, museums, and memorials. These sites serve as educational tools, offering a space for reflection on the war’s profound impact. However, some remnants of this turbulent period in history still pose a significant risk. In Greece, excavators who discovered a bomb dating back to the mid 1940s had to call in military experts for help.

According to the Greek City Times, the bomb, which weighed an astonishing 500 pounds, was found in the seaside area of Glyfada, south of Athens. A construction crew was digging into the ground in preparation of building a development center when they happened upon the explosive.

Greek army destroys World War II bomb found during excavation for luxury development near Athens https://t.co/RlM1I4A6p0

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The crew immediately called in specialists. Authorities evacuated nearby apartment complexes and diverted traffic from the area for two hours while experts worked on destroying the bomb. They did manage to successfully disarm it without detonation.

Italian and German aircraft regularly bombed the Glyfada area during the war, so it isn’t surprising that diggers uncovered an undetonated explosive. In fact, Mayor Giorgos Papanikolaou is prepared for the possibility that there could be more.

This isn’t the first bomb uncovered in Greece, either. In 2017, authorities evacuated 72,000 people from their Thessaloniki homes and businesses when another one from the WWII era was discovered beneath a gas station. This bomb also exceeded 500 pounds and measured more than 5 feet in length. That one was also safely destroyed without the need for detonation.

There’s no real way of knowing how many undetonated bombs may still exist out in the world as Allied and Axis forces dropped millions of explosives during the war. Once located, it is critical that experts properly destroy them. Even 100 years later, there’s still a small chance that they could go off if mishandled. Such an incident would prove deadly for anyone in close contact.