Some 60,000 people had to be evacuated from the area in the biggest operation of its kind since the war
ADVERTISEMENTExplosive experts in Germany have successfully defused a British world war two bomb found in Frankfurt last week.
Some 60,000 people were evacuated from their homes ahead of the operation, the biggest of its kind in the country since the war.
Officials expressed relief that the effort passed off without incident and that people and businesses would be able to return to their normal on Monday.
The operation took longer than planned because some people refused to leave the area, despite warnings an uncontrolled blast would be be enough to level a city block.
The device was found last week in the city’s leafy Westend neighbourhood, home to many wealthy bankers.
Premature babies and intensive care patients had to be evacuated along with everyone else from two hospitals and rescue workers helped about 500 elderly people leave residences and care homes.
More than 2,000 tonnes of live bombs and munitions are discovered each year in Germany, more than 70 years after the end of the war.
British and American warplanes pummelled the country with 1.5 million tonnes of bombs that killed 600,000 people.
Officials estimate that 15 percent of the bombs failed to explode, some burrowing six metres deep.