WWII bomb that forced evacuations safely detonated in Germany

A World War II aerial bomb discovered in the German city of Hanover was safely detonated on Sunday after thousands of residents were cleared from the area, according to local fire brigade officials.

Around 8,000 people had to leave their homes in the central German city and move to a safe distance of 1 kilometer while technicians investigated and carried out a controlled detonation of the 500-kilogram unexploded bomb.

Bags with tens of thousands of litres of water had been placed around and over the site of the bomb to direct the blast wave.