20,000 people were forced to evacuate the German city of Cologne’s city centre, including hospitals, care homes and a hotel All have been cordoned off as experts try to defuse the explosives. Police made sure to clear the entire 3,200ft “danger zone” which sat in the potential blast radius. This left several schools, kindergartens, museums and even the local tram network being shut down for hours. Three bridges over the famous river Rhine were also out of use.
The bombs are all US-manufactured weapons from over 80 years ago. Two are 90kg bombs with the third being a smaller 45kg weapon. The bombs are said to be equipped with impact fuzes which detonate when in contact with a hard surface.
