Massive evacuation in Cologne: World War II bomb near University Hospital discovered!

Massive evacuation in Cologne: World War II bomb near University Hospital discovered!

Köln, Deutschland - in Cologne currently have major challenges in front of the authorities and the population. On July 12th, an American five-center World War II bomb was found at the Cologne University Hospital. The site is in the immediate vicinity of the clinic, which has large consequences for the city. [24rhein] reports that the bomb is to be defused on Thursday, July 17, 2025, which results in a comprehensive evacuation.

A total of around 7,500 people are affected by the evacuation, including a large part of the university clinic. The radius of evacuation is 400 meters, which is why numerous residents and clinic staff have to leave their usual four walls. In order to ensure the security of everyone, retail bans are introduced in the affected areas. These have been in effect since July 15, 2025, while the containers were set up in areas of the containers from July 14, 2025. Possible tree trains for the release of visibility and security are currently being considered.

clinic and support for evacuated

The university clinic will stop all outpatient treatments on July 17th and an admission stop for planned inpatient recordings will be issued. According to [UK Cologne], the patients are informed by the responsible departments. For the residents concerned, an urban point of contact will be set up in the Theodor Heuss Realschule, which will open at 9 a.m. on the evacuation day. On this occasion you will be asked to bring important objects such as ID, medication and baby food. Unfortunately, pets must not be brought along. People with health restrictions or mobility problems should wait for support from the regulatory office.

As far as the transport connection is concerned, the Cologne residents have to prepare for numerous restrictions. The KVB traffic in the affected area is severely affected. Tram line 9 will continue to drive, but no entry or exit is possible at the stops in the evacuation radius. Since road closures apply to all road users, it is strongly recommended to use alternative routes.

large -scale evacuation measures and their backgrounds

This measure is part of the far -reaching efforts to take into account the security of the Cologne population. In the past, there have already been large evacuation campaigns in the city, such as when defusing several bombs in a 1000-meter radius around the Deutz shipyard. According to [ZDF], over 20,000 people had to leave their places of residence at the time, and even significant traffic routes such as the Hohenzollern Bridge were closed. Such measures are necessary because 1,500 to 2,000 bombs from the Second World War are discovered in North Rhine-Westphalia, including several large caliber.

The city administration and the university clinic work closely with the Düsseldorf district government's ordnance disposal service in order to ensure a smooth process during the defusing. However, the resulting challenges should not be underestimated. We will follow the development of the situation carefully and inform the public about all relevant information promptly.

For all those affected, it is now said: keep calm and be prepared, because there is a large evacuation campaign. Life in Cologne is temporarily turned upside down, but security is going on - not only in the hospital, but for everyone who lives nearby.