The 1,000-pound American bomb was found in the dried-up river by fishermen on July 25 near the northern village of Borgo Virgilio, near the city of Mantua. Col. Marco Nasi said the bomb, which was found to contain 530 lbs. of explosive material, was found on the bank of the river due to a decrease in the water level.
About 3,000 people living in the neighboring towns of Borgoforte and Motteziana were evacuated for the neutralization operation on Sunday, the army said. The airspace in the area was closed and navigation along this section of the waterway as well as traffic on a railway line and state road nearby was stopped. “At first, some of the residents said they wouldn’t move, but in the last few days, we think we’ve convinced everyone,” Borgo Virgilio mayor Francesco Aporti said, adding that if people had refused to go, businesses would have be paused. Bomb disposal engineers removed the fuse from the explosive device. The bomb squad, accompanied by police, then loaded the bomb into a truck and took it to an abandoned quarry in the township of Medole about 30 miles away, where it was placed inside a 19-foot-deep hole that had been dug for it. purpose, and then blew up, Italian newspaper Corriere Della Sera reported. A view shows parts of the dried Pa River suffering from the worst drought in 70 years, near Borgo Virgilio, Italy. REUTERS Fishermen came across the unexploded 1,000-pound bomb on July 25. on Sunday to secure and remove the bomb, which was found to contain 530 lbs. from explosive material. REUTERS The bomb was taken to an abandoned quarry, where it was detonated. via REUTERS The entire operation lasted from 9am to 4pm local time, including the time it took to secure the bomb, remove it from the river and destroy it.
Italy declared a state of emergency last month for the areas around the Po, the country’s largest river. It accounts for about a third of Italy’s agricultural production and is experiencing its worst drought in 70 years due to scorching temperatures in the region. By postal cables