50,000 face evacuation in Hannover over World War Two bombs

"Not uncommon" is quite an understatement.

[vienna]

I always feel a great deal of empathy and respect for the ordnance disposal personnel who go in and handle those old munitions; it's one thing to face an explosive when it is 'new' and it's another to face a device nearly three-quarters of a century old, deteriorated, unstable, and affected by any number of variables the 'new' devices did not present. Whatever it is they pay them, it certainly not enough...



<O>

[Aktungbby]

Originally Posted by vienna

it's one thing to face an explosive when it is 'new' and it's another to face a device nearly three-quarters of a century old, deteriorated, unstable, and affected by any number of variables the 'new' devices did not present. Whatever it is they pay them, it certainly not enough...



<O>

INDEED 10% of all bombs dropped in WWII were 'duds'! http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20150922-these-nazi-bombs-are-more-dangerous-now-than-ever-before

Cooke likens the design of a bomb to the process of making a fire: you light a match, ignite some paper, set fire to some kindling and finally ignite the coal. In his analogy the match, the most sensitive component in the whole chain, is the fuse, and the coal the explosive. The first and most critical step in the so-called Render Safe Process (RSP) is therefore to deactivate the fuse. Fuse Immunisation, as it’s known, typically involves drilling into the fuse and introducing a solution that neutralises the chemicals.

The average number of unexploded ordinance devices (UXO's) in Germany found daily is 15! and the problem is world wide. Laos is a particularly nasty problem...https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unexploded_ordnance

[Catfish]

As a US general answered, when asked about the percentage of bombs really exploding: ".. we only know that 100 percent reach the ground".
And i am very glad i do not live in Laos http://edition.cnn.com/2016/09/05/as...os-secret-war/

[Jimbuna]

The unoffical motto is "Intial Sucess or Total Failure" with Navy EOD but they removed it as insensitive.

[Skybird]

With the high density of bombs still hidden on German soil, we are lucky that in WWII they did not drop ICM-kind of bombs, closter bombs, air-delivered mines.

I am pretty certain that then we still would have occasional casualties over here, until today.