World War II-Era Bomb Safely Detonated in Drought-Stricken River in Italy After Over 3,000 Locals Evacuated

On Sunday, a 450-kg World War II bomb exploded in northern Italy, causing widespread panic. The event occurred along the Po River in Mantua, around 160 kilometers southeast of Milan.

Local police promptly initiated an evacuation operation to evacuate almost 3,000 people from the Borgo Virgilio area. The evacuation was done as a precaution before the controlled neutralizing of the WWII-era weapon.

Italy Detonates World War II Bomb

The bomb exploded under observation on Sunday afternoon near Borgo Virgilio hamlet, roughly 45 kilometers from human settlements.

Skilled military officers took the detonator from the device and placed it in a cave near the discovery location. They later dispersed the 450 kg explosive device made in the United States. The aforementioned explosion was part of the normal spread of WWII-era bombs that occurred throughout Europe.

The 450-kg bomb was discovered on July 25 in the low-flowing Po river, which is suffering from severe drought. The device was discovered by a fisherman on the banks of the Po River owing to a drop in water levels caused by the drought, Colonel Marco Nasi told DPA, Republic World reported.

The fuse from the explosive device was removed by bomb disposal experts. The bomb squad then loaded the bomb onto a truck and drove it 30 miles to an abandoned quarry in the Medole municipality, where it was placed inside a 19-foot-deep hole dug out for that purpose and then blown up, according to the Italian newspaper Corriere Della Sera.

The entire process began at 9 am till 5:00 pm local time, which includes the time it took to secure the device, remove it from the river, and detonate it. Last month, Italy declared a state of emergency in districts near the Po, the country's longest river. It contributes for nearly one-third of Italy's agricultural output and is in decline, according to the New York Post.

Europe Suffers Drought Due to Severe Heatwaves

CNN reported the heatwaves that have swept Europe this summer have delivered more than just record high temperatures and burned fields: the drought-stricken waters of Italy's Po River have run so low that a previously submerged World War II bomb has been discovered.

The bomb, which was developed by the United States during WWII, was discovered in the Po river in the town of Borgo Virgilio, close to Mantua Unprecedented heatwaves across Europe produced a drought, resulting in water levels low enough to show the device on July 25.

According to the publication, the device weighed 1,000 pounds in total and contained 530 pounds of explosives. The find made last month was not the first of its sort. A WWII bomb burst in Munich, Germany, in December 2021, and two additional unexploded WWII explosives were discovered in Hong Kong in 2018.

The Po is Italy's longest river, running from the country's Alps to the Adriatic Sea. The river supports almost one-third of the country's agriculture. Because of the drought, Italian officials declared a state of emergency on the river last month, as per Washington Examiner via MSN.