Police Order Gunwharf Quays Closure After 500kg Bomb Found in Harbour
Police have ordered the closure of Gunwharf Quays in Portsmouth following the discovery of a 500kg WW2 bomb this afternoon. Royal Navy bomb disposal experts were called in after dredgers found the device 60 meters from the harbor entrance in Portsmouth Specialist Royal Navy divers inspected the device and found it to still be live. They are working to recover it and tow it to a safe location to carry out a controlled explosion. The controlled explosion is like to take place tomorrow (30th September). [photoshelter-gallery g_id=”G0000JpzYO4jIRNc” g_name=”Bomb-Towe” width=”800″ f_fullscreen=”t” bgtrans=”t” pho_credit=”iptc” twoup=”f” f_bbar=”t” f_bbarbig=”f” fsvis=”f” f_show_caption=”t” crop=”f” f_enable_embed_btn=”t” f_htmllinks=”t” f_l=”t” f_send_to_friend_btn=”f” f_show_slidenum=”t” f_topbar=”f” f_show_watermark=”t” img_title=”casc” linkdest=”c” trans=”xfade” target=”_self” tbs=”5000″ f_link=”t” f_smooth=”f” f_mtrx=”t” f_ap=”t” f_up=”f” height=”400″ btype=”old” bcolor=”#CCCCCC” ] All units have been ordered to close to facilitate the safe recovery of the device. A Spokesman from the Royal Navy Said “An unexploded German 500kg bomb (WWII) has been found on the seabed in Portsmouth Harbour today (Sep 29). The device was located by a barge carrying out dredging works ahead of the arrival of the Navy’s new 65,000-tonne aircraft carrier – HMS Queen Elizabeth – next spring. At midnight tonight Royal Navy bomb disposal experts will tow the device into open waters 1.5 miles east of the Isle of Wight to dispose of the device in a controlled explosion. The controlled explosion is likely to be carried out in daylight hours early tomorrow (Friday). Impact on vessel movements during the tow will be minimal. Queen’s Harbour Master Portsmouth will ensure that any impact is kept during a minimum while the device is towed out of the harbour.” Hampshire Police have released the following.: “We’re supporting our Ministry of Defence police colleagues this evening after a suspicious device was found in Portsmouth Harbour earlier. Some local evacuations may be necessary to allow for the controlled disposal of the device. Ministry of Defence police will advise anyone who needs to take action.” Wightlink have advised that their midnight sailing will leave 15 minutes earlier from its berth. There may be issues with the 1am sailing from Fishbourne due to restrictions that are going to be put in place https://youtu.be/8gGVKv6tcTE
