Largest population evacuation in Greece underway, as authorities prepare to dispose of WWII bomb (photos)

The largest evacuation of civilians in peacetime in Greece has started on Saturday, as authorities are preparing to dispose of 250kg WWII bomb in Thessaloniki, Greece’s second largest city. operation. Around 72,000 residents are set to be evacuated from the district of Kordelio in the western part of the city. The shell, which weighs 250kg and contains 153kg of explosive material, was found 5 meters below ground last week. It was discovered by a gas company crew, carrying out works to expand a gas station’s underground tanks in the city. Although initial evacuation plans had included moving around 300 people, local authorities have decided to expand the evacuation zone up to 2km (1.2 miles). The new plan was issued on Tuesday, ordering the city’s areas of Kordelio-Evosmos and Ambelokipi–Menemen to be cleared, with 62,000 and 10,000 residents to be removed respectively – the largest such evacuation in Greece since the end of World War II, according to Reuters. Authorities have prepared around 100 buses and municipal cars to assist the evacuations, also urging residents to use their own transport if possible.
A state of emergency will be declared in the area for the entire time of the operation and everything in the vicinity of the deactivation zone will closed.

Alexandros Avramidi / Reuters