World War II bomb found in English garden to be exploded in the sea

A boat transporting the Plymouth bomb passing through Drake Islands. Photo / Twitter

A World War II bomb has been successfully transported to sea after it was discovered in a Plymouth garden on Wednesday.

The explosive was carried from the residential area of Keyham to the Torpoint Ferry slipway on the back of a military convoy. It was then loaded onto an inflatable boat and put in the water.

About 1219 properties and 3250 people were evacuated after the bomb was found on Wednesday on St Michael Ave, Plymouth city council said.

Lt Col Rob Swan, who has been leading the bomb disposal team, said the explosive will be lowered to about 14 metres below the sea surface before it is detonated.

He added that the detonation will occur this evening or tomorrow morning, depending on weather conditions.

Plymouth Council has confirmed the cordon in Keyham has been lifted following the removal of the bomb.

Experts decided detonating the device underwater was the safest option amid concerns for residents’ safety.

Craig Tower, a former Navy bomb disposal expert, said the detonation of the World War II explosive will cause a big “plume” and “large bang”.

Based on past experience he said the plume could be up to 100m high.

Speaking to Sky, he said: “You should get quite a lot of plume depending on the depth it could be 300ft high.

“You should get quite a large bang.”

St Michael Ave lies around 800m west of the HMNB Devonport, which was a major Luftwaffe target during the war, according to 1st Line Defence, a company that manages risks posed by unexploded bombs.

The World War II bomb being transported through Plymouth residential streets. Photo / X

More than 2500 high-explosive bombs were dropped on the city during the war, with many missing their intended target and falling on residential areas.

About 10 per cent of bombs dropped on the UK did not explode, it is estimated.

A map obtained from local archives “shows the locations of an astonishing number of recorded unexploded and delayed action bombs (removed or exploded) which fell in the area”, the company added on its website.

The reason the bomb did not explode “will never be known”, it added, but it may have been that some of the properties in the area were evacuated for a time, and the bomb was simply overlooked.