Disposers Dieter Schwaetzler, left, and Rene Bennert sit next to 1.8 ton WWII bomb right after they defused it, in Frankfurt, Germany, Sunday, Sept. 3, 2017. 70 000 people had to be evacuated. Police say bomb disposal experts have successfully defused a huge World War II-era bomb in the German financial capital Frankfurt that forced the evacuation of more than 60,000 residents. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)
The Associated Press
FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) - Bomb disposal experts defused a huge unexploded World War II-era bomb in the German financial capital Frankfurt that forced the evacuation of more than 60,000 residents, police said Sunday.
Hospital patients and the elderly were among those affected in what was Germany's biggest evacuation in recent history.
Construction workers found the 1.8-ton (4,000-pound) British bomb Tuesday. Officials ordered residents to evacuate homes within a 1.5-kilometer (nearly a mile) radius of the site in Germany's financial capital. Dozens of ambulances lined up early Sunday to pick up anyone unable to independently leave the danger zone.
The high capacity bomb, also dubbed a Blockbuster, was one of thousands dropped over Germany by the Royal Air Force during the final years of World War II to cripple the Nazi war machine and demoralize the German population.
Authorities warned that if the bomb had exploded, the shock wave could have caused widespread damage throughout the western part of the city.
Unexploded bombs are still found regularly across Germany, even 72 years after the war ended. About 20,000 people were evacuated from the western city of Koblenz before specialists disarmed a 500-kilogram U.S. bomb there Saturday.
Police cars drive on an almost deserted street during an evacuation of more than 60 000 people in Frankfurt, Germany, Sunday, Sept. 3, 2017. The evacuation became necessary due to an unexploded 1.8 ton WW II bomb that will be diffused later in the day. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)
The Associated Press
German police officers are checking houses and apartments during an evacuation of more than 60 000 people in Frankfurt, Germany, Sunday, Sept. 3, 2017. The evacuation became necessary due to an unexploded 1.8 ton WW II bomb that will be diffused later in the day. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)
The Associated Press
A group of elderly people wait at the assembly center at the Jahrhunderthalle hall, where numerous residents of nursing homes will spend the day in Frankfurt, Germany, Sunday, Sept. 3, 2017. More than 60,000 people will have to leave their homes due to an WWII bomb. The 1.8 ton WW II bomb will be defused later in the day. (Frank Rumpenhorst/dpa via AP)
The Associated Press
A member of the fire brigade, left, coordinates together with sister Sigrid , center, of the shelter for homeless people 'Ray of Hope', during an evacuation of more than 60 000 people in Frankfurt, Germany, Sunday, Sept. 3, 2017. The evacuation became necessary due to a 1.8 ton WW II bomb that will be defused later in the day. (Boris Roessler/dpa via AP)
The Associated Press
Police cars drive on an almost deserted street during an evacuation of more than 60 000 people in Frankfurt, Germany, Sunday, Sept. 3, 2017. The evacuation became necessary due to an unexploded 1.8 ton WW II bomb that will be diffused later in the day. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)
The Associated Press
Police men control during the evacuation of more than 60 000 people in Frankfurt, Germany, Sunday, Sept. 3, 2017. The evacuation became necessary due to a 1.8 ton WW II bomb that will be defused later in the day. (Frank Rumpenhorst/dpa via AP)
The Associated Press
Bomb dispoaL experts Rene Bennert, left, and Dieter Schwetzler from the regional council Darmstadt stand near the finding place of a WW II bomb in Frankfurt, Germany, Sunday, Sept. 3, 2017. More than 60,000 people left their homes due to an WWII bomb. The 1.8 ton WW II bomb will be defused later in the day. (Frank Rumpenhorst/dpa via AP)
The Associated Press