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Last month, an 1,100-pound unexploded bomb from WWII, believed to be of American origin, was uncovered near Cologne, Germany, where a construction crew had been digging. Some 3,000 people were evacuated from the area while the bomb was carefully extricated. Earlier last year, similar bombs near Cologne were discovered and defused.
This kind of situation would possibly seem unimaginable to Americans. What if, say, one of these blockbusters found itself in the shell of a new New York skyscraper? This, of course, cannot happen either because in World War II the United States was not bombed, but Germany was heavily bombed.
Wolfgang Schutt
In fact, bombs found near Cologne are not rare. Surprisingly, around 2,000 tons (yes, tons) of unexploded ordnance are discovered and detonated in Germany every year.
A while back, I visited the country to imbed for a few days with the brave “hurt locker” German police as they hunted for these things. Part of our experience was out in the field, the other part visiting remote bunkers where many of the dangerous munitions are stored. Ordnance of all types – mortars, artillery shells, grenades, aerial bombs and mines from countries including Russia, the U.S. and Great Britain – are sprinkled around the reinforced concrete structure.
Peter Ewler, a bomb disposal expert, greeted us at his bunker near the Oder River on the Polish/German border. Once inside, he asked me to pick an artillery shell out of a metal-wire bin, but first to put on gloves. “We must have some rules,” he grinned in a madman kind of way.
Forbes Jim Clash holds an unexploded shell from World War II in a secluded German bunker near the Oder River.
Wolfgang Schütt
The shell was medium sized and very rusty, and just holding it scared me. It also scared my photographer, a German named Wolfgang Schutt, because he was afraid I would disappoint him. It’s probably not a smart concept to do that.
After touring the bunker, we went to the terrain and, with steel detectors, searched for bombs with and without detonators. Sometimes those containing detonators are not solid enough to be transported to a garage bunker and will therefore need to be destroyed on site.
German police detonate unexploded ordnance from World War II under the gaze of Forbes Jim Clash.
Wolfgang Schütt
One uncooperative scoundrel with its detonator required us to dig a five-foot hole in the ground, attach an electrical wire to it, carefully place the device at the bottom of the hole, then pile the loose dirt on top.
After our crew backed up a few hundred yards, the police officer in charge pushed a button sending an electrical charge to the device. A huge explosion ensued, sending dirt, smoke and shrapnel more than 100 feet into the air. The deafening crack of the explosion arrived a second or two later.
One misconception: Over time, this old ammo loses its power. After all, those things have been buried for, what, seven decades, so what’s the problem?
The German government is using old reconnaissance photographs taken by American and British pilots to locate sites where unexploded bombs from World War II are buried.
Wolfgang Schütt
According to a recent study by the Royal Society Open Science, the bomb casing cover deteriorates, but internal active explosives such as Amatol and TNT do not, the main explosives are just as powerful. than at the time of its manufacture. And as the casing cover deteriorates, the core is exposed to external elements such as snow, rain, etc. , making the ammunition even more unstable.
Forbes Jim Clash examines a crater created through the detonation of unexploded ordnance from World War II through German police.
Wolfgang Schütt
Sometimes, thanks to old American and British aerial reconnaissance photographs, giant unexploded bombs are discovered under schools, churches, and houses built after the war. When this happens, the occupants will have to leave while the bulldozers clean up the site. Sometimes bombs explode unexpectedly, property is destroyed and lives are lost.
Bottomline, Germany is still at war, but this time with itself. And it may be losing. As explained earlier, the longer the explosive chemicals remain in the ground, the more unstable they become. Like Ernest Hemingway wrote in one of his famous short stories: “William Campbell was in a pursuit race with a burlesque show.” Except this time William Campbell is Germany, and the burlesque show is its unexploded bombs.
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