A German police patrol blocks a road near the former Opel factory in Kaiserslautern, Germany, on May 11, 2023. The discovery of a 550-pound World War II bomb caused a handful of street closures. (Alexander Riedel/Stars and Stripes)
KAISERSLAUTERN, Germany — Defusing of an unexploded World War II bomb discovered during excavation work temporarily halted construction Thursday at a new electric vehicle battery plant and held up some incoming flights at Ramstein Air Base.
The 550-pound explosive was found Wednesday, less than 20 inches underground beneath a concrete slab on the site of the former Opel car factory.
The grounds are located between the U.S. Army’s Rhine Ordnance Barracks and Pulaski Barracks, as well as within the approach path for aircraft bound for the air base.
“We know that aircraft were waiting in a holding pattern, so time mattered,” said Werner Schmidt, a spokesman for the Kaiserslautern regulatory office.
The defusing operation began at 11:52 a.m., and was finished in about 16 minutes, according to the city. German officials worked with a representative from the 569th U.S. Forces Police Squadron to coordinate with the Ramstein tower.
A German fire engine waits on the grounds of the Automotive Cells Company factory in Kaiserslautern, Germany, on May 11, 2023. A World War II bomb was found by workers preparing the ground for construction of an electric vehicle battery plant. (Alexander Riedel/Stars and Stripes)
German explosive ordnance disposal crews defused a 550-pound World War II bomb May 11, 2023, in Kaiserslautern, Germany. The U.S.-made bomb was dropped decades ago on the industrial installations near railway lines in Kaiserslautern. (Alexander Riedel/Stars and Stripes)
Alexander Schaefer of the Rheinland-Pfalz explosive ordnance disposal service takes away a World War II bomb he defused, May 11, 2023, in Kaiserslautern, Germany. (Alexander Riedel/Stars and Stripes)
Within minutes of the opening, an Air Force C-17 Globemaster III flew above the factory grounds on its approach into Ramstein.
“Workers here must have crossed over (the bomb) thousands of times,” said Peter Hamel, a spokesman for ACC, the battery manufacturer that will occupy the site.
Alexander Schaefer, a troop lead with the Rheinland-Pfalz explosive ordnance clearance service, said the bomb came equipped with two mechanical fuses, one in the front and one in the rear.
He and his partner removed it by disconnecting the internal ignition chain, which contains more than 275 pounds of hazardous explosives.
Alexander Schaefer of the Rheinland-Pfalz explosive ordnance disposal service secures a World War II bomb for transport, May 11, 2023, in Kaiserslautern, Germany. (Alexander Riedel/Stars and Stripes)
While it was the first bomb found during the construction for the new battery factory, it may not be the last, officials said.
Four bombs where found in 2019 alone when building got underway at the nearby Amazon distribution center, which opened in September.
German technicians remove nearly 5,000 bombs each year. The country’s national ordnance disposal organization, KSU, estimates that nearly 100,000 tons of explosive material remains buried in fields and under city streets.
Workers discovered a World War II bomb May 10, 2023, while excavating the site of the former Opel vehicle factory near the U.S. Army's Rhine Ordnance Barracks in Kaiserslautern, Germany. A German ordnance disposal team defused and secured the bomb within 16 minutes on May 11, city officials said. (Kaiserslautern City)
The industrial corridor and rail tracks in Kaiserslautern saw especially heavy bombardments and air raids during the war.
In February, a similar American-made bomb was found in the city center, requiring businesses to close and residents to vacate their buildings for hours.
However, the location at the largely empty construction grounds made for a safe operation, Schaefer said.
Production in the adjacent Opel plant, which continues to operate an engine manufacturing site as part of a formerly much larger industrial complex, was not affected by the evacuation.
Shoppers at the nearby IKEA also were undisturbed by the ordnance removal.
The defused bomb was quickly readied for transport to a bunker for temporary storage. From there, it will go to an ordnance disposal range near Luebeck.
