Cologne in breath: Mega evacuation Successful for bombing!

Cologne in breath: Mega evacuation Successful for bombing!

The city of Cologne breathes: After one of the greatest evacuation campaigns in post -war history, the danger from non -detonated bombs from the Second World War is banned. As reported Radio Köln, over 20,000 people were able to return to their apartments on June 5, 2025, after three diligently at the Deutzer shipyard had been defused. This operation began with the evacuation, which was started on Monday, June 4, when several bombs were discovered during exploratory work for road construction projects.

The affected bombs were anything but small: a ten-century bomb and two twenty-centers bombs of American origin had to be defused on site, so that the historic town hall could not be used in the middle of the evacuation zone itself for the planned weddings. While the streets around the town hall were empty and the old town seemed almost extinct, the city administration was challenged to ensure the safety of all citizens and to react quickly to the situation.

great support

The extensive evacuation measure was supported by help from all over North Rhine-Westphalia. For example, emergency services from Bonn, Aachen, Heinsberg and Euskirchen were used to ensure security during defusing. According to the Deutsche Welle [DW] (https://www.dw.com/de/bomben defines ,C3%A4rfung-blindg%C3%A4nger-nich-nur-in-k%C3%B6ln-gef%C3%A4hrlich/A-72788073) not only residents had to be evacuated; Patients and patients of the Eduardus hospital and residents of retirement homes were also brought back with ambulances. However, the human side of the emergency was also present: two sick people had to be brought out of the security area with an ambulance, and a man refused to leave his apartment.

The assignment, which lasted until the early morning hours of June 6, is only completed after the defusing was successfully done at 0:30 a.m. A live ticker kept the population up to date with developments.

ordnance disposal in Germany

The events in Cologne illustrate the challenges of ordnance disposal. In Germany, as well as internationally, non -detonated ordnance are an important legacy of the Second World War. The [Wikipedia] (https://de.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/kampf remedy) explains that the disposal of ordnance is an essential task to ensure public security, regulated by specific regulations in every federal state. This not only includes the defusing of bombs, but also historical explorations and the risk assessment of affected areas.

Each federal state has its own organization for evacuation. In 2022, a budget of around 20 million euros was provided in North Rhine-Westphalia to continue the disposal of ordnance. The technology has continued to develop, and the focus on safety has also become more important - especially when you consider that tens of thousands of duds are still in the ground.

The question remains how many people can still be protected from these old war consequences. These events in Cologne are not only local nature, they reflect a larger, historical problem that is also in other cities in Germany and Europe.