Thousands evacuated in Berlin after WWII bombs unearthed

Two unexploded World War II bombs discovered in separate parts of Berlin this week forced the evacuation of more than 20,000 people, marking one of the largest bomb-related operations in the city in recent years.

On Thursday evening, authorities ordered the evacuation of around 10,000 residents from the Mitte district after a bomb was discovered in the Spree River during construction work near Fischerinsel. A 500-meter security perimeter was established in the densely populated area, which includes several embassies and administrative buildings.

Police officers conducted door-to-door notifications, while public transport and road traffic were halted in the area. Subway service on line U2 was suspended, and all ship traffic on the Spree was stopped overnight.

Hundreds of residents sought shelter at an emergency overnight facility set up at the Berlin Mitte town hall. Due to high demand, a second shelter was opened at a nearby school shortly after midnight.

By early Friday morning, Berlin police confirmed that the river bomb did not require defusing.

“We can give the all-clear,” a police spokesperson told the German Press Agency (dpa). “There is no longer any danger. The bomb does not need to be defused.”

Authorities said the device was located under four meters of water and was covered in silt, which initially complicated the assessment. Residents were allowed to return to their homes after the area was deemed safe.

Separately, in the Spandau district of Berlin, a second unexploded bomb weighing 100 kilograms was found on Wednesday. Unlike the river bomb, this device is scheduled to be defused on Friday.

Police established a safety zone around the site and evacuated approximately 12,400 people. A local gym has been converted into an emergency shelter, and the site remains under police guard.

Authorities said the bomb did not pose an immediate threat but emphasized the need for controlled defusal.

The discovery of unexploded ordnance from World War II remains common in German cities. Construction projects are routinely preceded by checks for buried bombs, particularly in areas that experienced heavy Allied bombing during the war.

Thursday’s evacuation in Mitte was among the largest in recent Berlin history, highlighting the ongoing legacy of wartime destruction.