Hong Kong Police Locate, Dismantle World War II-Era Bomb

Hong Kong police recently discovered a World War II-era bomb dropped by the United States at a work site in the Happy Valley district of the city. Fortunately, authorities dismantled the bomb without incident.

In a statement to CNN, Hong Kong officials said the bomb was recently unearthed at a construction site for a new hotel. The bomb was found upright in the ground, prompting police to evacuate the area until the problem was properly assessed.

“We all panicked when we heard that a bomb has being found nearby,” an AIA Group worker said police asked employees to leave the building.

Six disposal experts headed to the bomb’s location in Hong Kong on Thursday afternoon to have a look at the device in question. Officials determined that the 2,000-pound bomb was reportedly dropped by US forces at some point during World War II. However, it failed to detonate upon impact.

Although the safest way to deal with this sort of situation is to perform a controlled detonation, authorities said this section of Hong Kong is simply too populated to safely execute the explosion.

Bomb disposal experts reportedly spent 15 hours removing the explosion elements from the device. Officials had to take extra precautions since the bomb landed where a temple, a few hotels, and several homes presently reside. A spokesperson for the Hong Kong police said it was the biggest bomb ever discovered in the city.

“It has taken a longer time because of… technical problems when drilling holes into the bomb and because of the large amount of explosives inside it,” bomb disposal officer Yuen Hon-wing explained.

He added, “Because the explosive inside was very sensitive, we had to cut the shell in a low-temperature environment, so the process took longer than expected. What is left now is a metallic bomb shell.”

The Economic Times described the bomb as “1.7 meters long, with a diameter of 60 centimeters.” Thankfully, authorities were able to dismantle the bomb without causing it to explode.

As frightening as it may sound, explosive devices are routinely discovered in Hong Kong. Allied forces dropped several bombs on the area when Japan controlled the city during World War II. Police located a different bomb in an area known as the Peak back in November. Officials were able to remove it with a controlled detonation.

Thankfully, the bomb located in the Happy Valley district of Hong Kong was successfully dismantled without incident. Police reopened the area on Friday, allowing businesses to resume operation.

[Image via Wikimedia Commons]