After a large-scale evacuation operation, explosives experts uncovered and identified several suspected dud bombs from World War II in Göttingen on Saturday. According to the city, they must be blown up in a controlled manner. The blast is scheduled for around 9:30 p.m.
Duds with long-term detonators from the Second World War were found at all five suspect sites in Göttingen. The five 10-hundredweight bombs would have to be detonated in a controlled manner. The blast is scheduled for around 9:30 p.m. The city announced: Residents in the area between 1,000 and 1,250 meters around the evacuation area should go into the house for their own protection and not stay near the window. Despite the protective wall surrounding the sites, splinters could fly far.
City of Göttingen: “Patience is required”
It may be some time before the restricted area can be entered again and the residents return to their homes. After the blast, the area must be inspected and secured by a team of experts. “For safety reasons, the roads in the evacuation area can only be released again after this check.” According to the city, the restricted area may only be re-entered after official approval.
Again and again, unauthorized persons enter the restricted area
On Saturday evening, the city renewed its call to stay away from the restricted area at all costs. People were repeatedly sighted in the restricted area on Saturday. “The city expressly requests that you never enter the restricted area for your own safety. If people are apprehended in the restricted area, each individual case will be checked afterwards to determine whether and how much a fine can be levied,” says a statement from the City.
Evacuation delayed by several hours
Around 10,000 residents had to leave their homes in the early morning. There were already delays in the morning hours: Actually, everyone should have left the evacuation area by 6 a.m. But hours later, according to the city, several people were sighted in the restricted area. Around 10 a.m. it was reported that the area had been completely cleared. But it didn’t stop there: Because people were reported again later, the explosive ordnance clearance workers had to interrupt their work twice in the morning and the police checked the restricted area. Göttingen’s First City Councilor Christian Schmetz nevertheless spoke of a largely smooth process. “We had two brief interruptions, but the emergency services are highly motivated and operations are running smoothly,” said Schmetz on Saturday afternoon.
Drones and police helicopters in action
Emergency services had been going door to door since early morning to check whether residents had left their homes. Two drones and a police helicopter were also used. The train station was cleared and closed at around 7 a.m. The five suspicious spots are on a wasteland between Leine and Schützenplatz. The restricted area has a radius of 1,000 meters. Around 1,800 emergency services from the police, fire brigade, THW, rescue services and other aid organizations are on duty at the weekend for work related to evacuation and security. The Göttingen police are supported by hundreds from all over Lower Saxony.
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10,000 residents have to leave their homes. There could have been five World War II bombs between the Leine and Schützenplatz. 1 min
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evacuation center at school
For those who cannot organize private accommodation, the city offers a stay in an evacuation center. On Saturday morning, more than 230 people used the Felix-Klein-Gymnasium, as the city announced. According to the information, the center can accommodate up to 600 people. If there is more demand, another location will be available, it said. The city has a telephone hotline for further questions (0551) 400 50 50 furnished. She is expected to be available around the clock on weekends.
The radius for evacuation
Which streets are closed?
The evacuation radius of 1,000 meters around the site has been completely closed to traffic since 6 a.m. This also applies to Göttingen train station. The following overview of the city shows which streets will be closed and which will remain free:
At the freight traffic center: direction Güterbahnhofstraße, free to the roundabout entrance to Novelis (the entrance to Novelis is free)
Annastrasse: passable throughout
Arndstraße: free from Goßlerstraße to Annastraße
Berliner Strasse: passable throughout
Bertheaustraße: free between Annastraße and Goßlerstraße
Emilienstraße: completely closed
Godehardstraße: completely closed
Grätzelstraße, direction Königsallee: free up to the Sportstätte/Schnitzelparadies entrance
Greitweg, direction Königsstieg: free to the Saline exit (the passage towards Industriestraße is free)
Groner Landstraße, out of town (direction Posthof): free from Groner-Tor-Straße to the railway bridge
Hannoversche Straße, towards the city center: free until the Liebrechtstraße exit
In Rinschenrott, towards town: free up to the level crossing (near house no. 6)
Jheringstraße, towards the city: free until the entrance to the coming width.
Kasseler Landstraße, towards the city: free up to the Salinenweg entrance
Königsallee, towards the city (direction Hagenweg roundabout): free up to the level crossing (access to the ARAL petrol station is free)
Kreuzbergring, driving in the direction of Weender Landstraße: free up to Annastraße
Stresemannstraße, direction of travel Königsallee: free up to level crossing (near house no. 23)
Weender Landstraße, out of town: free from Arndtstraße
Weender Landstrasse: Weender Strasse/Heinz-Ehrhard-Platz – drive in the direction of Weende free to the ESSO gas station (the entrance to the ESSO gas station is free).
Public transport during the evacuation
The city buses will be diverted extensively. The following restrictions apply to the regional buses to and from Göttingen for the two days of the closure:
Line 130 begins/ends at the Eiswiese stop.
Line 140 begins/ends at the Reinholdstraße stop.
Lines 150,154,155,160 start/end at the Theaterplatz stop. Passengers continuing their journey have the option of changing to the SEV.
Line 170 begins/ends at the Humboldtallee stop.
Lines 180 and 185 start/end at the Lutteranger stop.
Lines 110,120,210,220 start/end at Kauf Park (old long-distance bus stop). Passengers continuing their journey have the option of changing to a city bus line at the respective end points. The KaufPark will probably also be served during the evacuation period during off-peak times.
Long-distance train services will be diverted
Long-distance trains ran through the station without stopping until 9 a.m. Since then, the trains have been diverted widely or have to be canceled individually, as the Deutsche Bahn announced.
ICE trains Berlin – Kassel – Frankfurt(M) – Switzerland are diverted between Berlin Hbf and Fulda. Alternatively, the trains stop in Berlin-Südkreuz and Halle(S) Hbf.
ICE trains Hamburg – Hanover – Frankfurt(M) – Stuttgart/Switzerland are diverted without stopping between Hanover and Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe and are delayed by about 60 minutes.
ICE trains Hamburg – Hanover – Würzburg – Munich are canceled between Hanover and Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe.
ICE trains Bremen – Hanover – Frankfurt (M) – Karlsruhe are canceled between Nörten-Hardenberg and Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe. Replacement buses run between Nörten-Hardenberg and Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe via Göttingen, Hst. Albaniplatz.
ICE trains Berlin – Braunschweig – Frankfurt (M) Airport are cancelled.
Rail replacement service is set up
The rail replacement service (SEV) for regional trains and long-distance trains stops at Albaniplatz during the evacuation. The regional trains start and end in Northeim and in Eichenberg, from there an SEV will be set up. A special timetable applies to the RB 80 and RB 82 during the evacuation VSN website is available.
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She was discovered at a construction site. 20,000 people had to leave their homes temporarily. 3 mins
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One out of six suspects negative
The possible localities are east of the Leine. During the technical preparatory work for the operation, the Lower Saxony explosive ordnance disposal service (KBD) determined that one of the six initial suspects was negative. During the preliminary technical investigation, the team led by demolition expert Thorsten Lüdeke found a bundled accumulation of massive bomb splinters at the suspected spot. They prove that a bomb detonated at the site and that it is therefore not a dud.
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