City recovers after bomb disposal drama

DETONATION TOOK PLACE JUST BEFORE 10PM

- ANITA MERRITT

A WORLD War Two bomb that had the potential to cause huge devastation to homes in Plymouth and forced thousands to evacuate was successfully detonated at sea just before 10pm on Friday.

The efforts of Armed Forces bomb disposal specialists have been praised following the successful detonation of the German Second World War bomb found at a home in the city.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) confirmed the air-dropped bomb - designated as a SC-500 - discovered in a garden in St Michael Avenue, in the Keyham area of Plymouth, had been detonated at sea.

The 500kg explosive was discovered in a back garden last Tuesday, which prompted "one of the largest UK peacetime evacuation operations, according to the MoD. It forced thousands of people to evacuate in Plymouth.

It was detonated at 9.51pm on Friday.

Earlier, Lieutenant Colonel Rob Swan, who was at the scene, said that the bomb would be taken to a depth of at least 14 metres before a diver would place a donor charge on the bomb to ignite the explosive.

Around 30 of the Armed Forces' most experienced bomb disposal specialists had worked around the clock since Tuesday to assess the condition of the device, after it was discovered.