The discovery of two Second World War bombs plunged Berlin into chaos, forcing around 20,000 people in the German capital to evacuate. Local reports say some 10,000 in the Fischerinsel neighbourhood, in the busy Mitte district in the city centre, were given an evacuation order on Thursday night after the ordnance was found in the River Spree.
Government buildings and embassies in Mitte, which is popular with tourists, were also shut as the area was cordoned off. The evacuation was completed at around 5am local time this morning, Berlin Police said. Meanwhile, approximately 12,400 people were told to leave their homes in the west of the city after a 100-kilogram Russia bomb was unearthed.
It was found on Wednesday morning by construction workers carrying out an excavation in the Spandau district.
Police said the bomb posed no immediate danger and experts decided to postpone its defusing until Friday.
A 500-metre exclusion zone around the bomb has been set up, with residents told to leave their homes by 8am local time this morning.
Authorities provided refuge to evacuated locals in both Mitte and Spandau.
German media reported long queues outside the emergency shelter at City Hall Mitte, with one queuing father telling Tagesspiegel: “We just want to sleep, it’s unbearable.”
On Friday morning, authorities confirmed the bomb in the Spree river posed no threat.
Police said the 500-metre exclusion zone also in place around Mitte had been lifted and “everyone can return”.
A spokesperson told the German Press Agency: “We can give the all-clear. There is no longer any danger. The bomb does not need to be defused.
“The incendiary bomb was categorised as non-hazardous during the assessment.”
The bomb, discovered on Thursday afternoon near the Mühlendamm lock during construction work, was inspected by divers in the early morning.
It is expected to be removed from the river and then disposed of.
Disposal of the bomb found in Spandau is expected to continue until the afternoon, a police spokesperson said.
The discovery of Second World War ordnance is not uncommon in Germany, especially during construction work.