World War II bomb drama ended well

PHOTO FEATURE: A large evacuated area in the Norwegian town of Elverum has been declared safe again, after a massive military and civilian operation successfully disarmed and later detonated an 85-year-old bomb during the weekend. It was among many that had fallen on the area during the beginning of World War II.

Belgian bomb experts were flown in to offer advice and contribute to the emergency effort to dismantle and move the bomb from where it was suddenly discovered here at the Terningmoen military base in Elverum. It had been quickly cordoned off, and the bomb surrounded by a protective wall. Around 1,000 military staff are on duty at the base and it’s located near a residential area and critical infrastructure, so both it and everyone within a 1500-meter radius had been evacuated.

The bomb, which dated from the Nazi German invasion of Norway in April 1940, had been found during routine excavation work at Terningmoen, which is  currently under expansion connected to Norway’s current defense build-up. “The bomb had a very large load of explosives (125 kilos), so it was dangerous to move it,” Commander Chris Taarneby Maukeng, who led the operation, told state broadcaster NRK.

After several days of intense planning and help from the bomb experts within the Belgian military, Maukeng’s team could use special equipment from a distance to dismantle the bomb and move it away from the area. Both local police and health care workers were involved.

After its fuses had been removed, the team could lift the large and extremely heavy disarmed bomb onto a truck. It was then driven on Sunday up to a military practice range tied to the base and destroyed. The process involved “controlled destruction” that caused several loud and powerful explosions. “It was a demanding operation,” Maukeng said, that ended well but brought forth the dangers of war decades later.

To see a video of the explosions that ended the bomb drama, click here (external link to NRK’s website) and then on the arrow next to the text: “Her blir flybomben detonert Here’s the bomb being detonated”.

Current war fears following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and uncertainty around the future of NATO under new US President Donald Trump have contributed to the Norwegian defense build-up that includes the expansion of the Terningmoen base, which in turn led to the discovery of the old German bomb. Local mayor Lillian Skjærvik told NRK that it had been a “special” week for Elverum residents, “but we have been reassured by the defense forces who dealt with all this, and we rely on them.” She said local residents also had reacted to the emergency in an “exemplary” manner. Some evacuated families simply headed off into the woods and spent the weekend camping out.

ALL PHOTOS: Forsvaret/Synne Nilsson

TEXT: NewsinEnglish.no/Nina Berglund