Image: BBC
Hundreds of homes in Falmouth, Cornwall, were evacuated in September after a suspected 250-pound American bomb from the Second World War was found in the water near Falmouth Docks. More than 300 homes were cleared by 23rd September, and residents returned that afternoon after the bomb was safely removed from the docks. The BBC said a 300-metre exclusion zone was put in place on Tuesday and expanded to 755 metres on Wednesday. Residents of more than 300 homes were asked to leave before nine o’clock in the morning, ahead of the bomb being moved. The broadcaster said the evacuation involved about 2,000 people.
A diver discovered the unexploded device on 21st September, and the exclusion zone was widened two days later. Final disposal in deep water well out at sea was planned for several days later, once divers could return.
Superintendent Thompson confirmed that all cordons had been lifted and that the multi-agency operation had concluded.
Thalia Marrington, the Cornwall councillor responsible for public safety, called the removal of the device “the news everyone wanted to hear”, according to South West News Service. She thanked military specialists, emergency services, council teams and volunteers, as well as residents and businesses for their patience during a worrying and disruptive time. He thanked the Falmouth community for its patience and praised the skill and bravery of the military bomb disposal experts.
It said the estimate of 339 homes was about 1,000 fewer than the 1,300 first estimated, when the cordon was set at 1.4 kilometres. Superintendent Ian Thompson, policing commander for West Cornwall, put the figure at some 336 households. Both outlets reported that the operation involved 81 police officers and staff, along with 113 volunteers and colleagues from partner agencies. Jean Elsie, aged 92, said she had lived through the war in south London and did not mind much. Maureen Gill, aged 89, had assumed the closed road was for roadworks until she heard the news on the radio.
South West News Service reported that the bomb was first moved to a safer location within the docks before being removed for disposal. The BBC reported that All Saints’ Church in Falmouth served as a help centre, where displaced residents were given tea, coffee and somewhere to sit.
The council said the bomb would be disposed of in deep water well out at sea, with nothing to see or hear from the shore. The cordon had been reduced at seven o’clock the previous evening. Emergency services, council staff and volunteers knocked on doors to help residents leave. The cordon was lifted, and residents were allowed home. The reports reviewed for this article did not confirm that the final disposal had been completed. Folk singer Will Keating, one of those asked to leave home, sang and played guitar to lift spirits.
South West News Service reported that the zone took effect at nine o’clock on Wednesday morning and covered multiple postcodes. Cornwall Council confirmed before four o’clock in the afternoon on Wednesday that the device had been safely removed from Falmouth Docks.
