Thousands of people were evacuated from an area north of Paris as a bomb dating back to World War II was detonated in a controlled manner, the BBC reports.
Residents in Colombes who lived within a 450-meter radius of where the device was found last month were told by police to leave their homes by 7 a.m. local time while authorities carried out an operation to dispose of the bomb.
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Letter to the Reader — Why We're Asking for Your Support ContributeAn initial attempt to remove the device's detonator failed, French media reported, prompting authorities to destroy the historic munitions on site with a controlled explosion.
The operation was "successfully carried out" and the evacuation order was lifted early Sunday evening, the prefect of Hauts-de-Seine confirmed in a statement.
The bomb was discovered on April 10 during construction work on Rue des Champarons. Authorities secured the area and covered the device with sand while preparations were made for its removal.
Before the operation, local official Alexandre Brugere said it would be "dangerous" and required a "high level of preparation."
Nearly 800 police officers were deployed to enforce the 900-meter evacuation zone, while a second, wider zone extending one kilometer from the bomb site allowed residents to stay inside but restricted outdoor activity.
Residents received emergency alerts instructing them to leave and were told they would not be allowed to return until the operation was completed.
"The authorities told us to close the windows when we left the house, but we didn't take anything - we left everything as it was," Alida, a resident of the area, told Le Parisien newspaper.
Reception centers were set up for those forced to flee their homes, including support for vulnerable residents seeking medical assistance.
Police said bomb disposal experts carried out the controlled explosion at 3:20 p.m. Sunday. The evacuation order was lifted shortly after 4 p.m.
Unexploded bombs from World War II are still regularly found across Europe, 86 years after the war began.
Those discovered in urban centers – usually during excavations for the foundations of new buildings – may pose a greater risk due to the dense surrounding population.