Nearly 20,000 people will have to be evacuated in Berlin following the discovery of two unexploded Second World War bombs.
Around 7,500 residents were told to leave their homes on Thursday evening after police erected a 500-metre cordon in the Fischerinsel area of the city, authorities said. People were warned to avoid the area, with long queues seen outside emergency shelters as residents were left out in the cold overnight.
The alarm was raised during checks made prior to construction work. Police then cordoned off the area before specialist teams uncovered a bomb covered in silt and slime under four metres of water in the Spree river.
In a post on X, Berlin police wrote: “After an initial assessment by our KTI, it is believed to be a #WorldWarBomb. For your safety, we are now establishing a 500-meter exclusion zone around the discovery site. Evacuation measures in the affected buildings will begin shortly. There will be traffic restrictions in the area around #Fischerinsel. Please avoid the area by taking a wide detour.”
They later added a map and instructed all residents to leave the area: “All persons are requested to immediately leave the restricted area. Please expect that the security measures will continue throughout the night.
“Only after the complete evacuation will our #criminalistics team inspect the #WorldWarBomb and then decide whether and when it will be defused.”
On Friday morning, teams confirmed the bomb did not need to be defused and all residents could return home.
Alle Personen sind aufgefordert den Sperrkreis umgehend zu verlassen. Bitte rechnen Sie damit, dass die Sperrmaßnahmen die Nacht andauern werden. Erst nach der vollständigen Evakuierung wird unsere #Kriminaltechnik die #Weltkriegsbombe begutachten und dann entscheiden ob und wann… pic.twitter.com/oPFmv3mX8z
— Polizei Berlin (@polizeiberlin) September 18, 2025
Separately, another bomb weighing 100kg was found in the Spandau district on Wednesday and will be defused on Friday, authorities said. Around 12,000 people will be required to leave the district.
Huge queues were reported outside an emergency shelter in Mitte, with a second shelter opened later to accommodate more people.
Residents were told they could return to their homes early on Friday morning. “We can give the all-clear,” a Berlin police spokesperson told the German press agency dpa. “There is no longer any danger. The bomb does not need to be defused.”
In a post on X, the force wrote: “The World War II bomb discovered yesterday during construction work in Berlin-Mitte was located several meters under water and mud.
“Since such a find generally poses an immediate danger, a security perimeter had to be established as a precaution, and residents had to be evacuated for the night.
“Only after the people had been brought to safety in this way could our KTI specialists check it this morning using special equipment and determined: There is no danger from the dud. The security perimeters have been lifted; everyone can return.”
Local media reported ship traffic on the Spree river was halted overnight, as well as service on some subway routes.
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