Thousands evacuated after WW2 bomb found in Bath

As many as 1,000 homes have been evacuated in Bath following the discovery of an unexploded WW2 bomb that was found buried under a former school playground.

Residents spent the night away from home last night after the device was discovered by builders using a digger at the city's Royal High School. Some were given temporary shelter at Bath Racecourse.

Pupils did not have to be evacuated as they were moved to a new building in January in order to make room for a 54-home development on the Lansdown Crescent site.

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According to the Daily Mail, it could be 48 hours before residents are allowed to return to their homes. A 300-metre exclusion zone has been set up around the site and the army has been called in.

An Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) team has been called to the site, says the BBC, and is using 250 tonnes of sand to build a precautionary barrier around the device while they carry out a controlled explosion.

Twenty roads in the city have been shut and the police are asking motorists to consider whether it is really necessary for them to make their journeys, if travelling into the centre of Bath.

Local resident Bob Lawrence, who spent the night at the racecourse, said: "I was walking back from the pub – up Lansdown Road – and the people in front of us got turned back by the police but we took another route home.

"At about 9 o'clock we got a knock on the door and the police advised [us] to evacuate. A couple of our neighbours decided to stay there but the rest of us moved out."

Another resident, Glyn, who did not give his surname, said he had decided to stay at home, adding: "To be fair, the bomb's been there for 70 years. I've lived long enough with that bomb next to me and if it was going to go off, it would have gone off by now."

A police spokesman said: "Decisions to evacuate houses are never taken lightly but during these incidents public safety will always be our primary concern.

"We also appreciate the anxiety many in the local community may feel following the discovery of the device and the time required to remove it but we would urge people not to be alarmed.

"The EOD are working as quickly as they can to remove the device and we will provide regular updates on their progress."

Bath was heavily bombed in April 1942, says the Mail, as part of the so-called 'Baedeker raids', which targeted places of historic or cultural importance in an effort to destroy morale.

An estimated 80 Luftwaffe aircraft bombed the city in three waves over the weekend of 25 to 27 April 1942, says the newspaper.

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