The heat waves recorded in Europe as a consequence of the climate emergency, which led to fires and deaths, also allowed the discovery of a bomb from the Second World War era submerged in the Po River in Italy.
Specialists disarmed the 450-kilogram bomb and carried out a controlled explosion on Sunday (7). The explosive was discovered on the 25th near the village of Borgo Virgilio, in Lombardy.
According to Colonel Marco Nasi, the bomb was found by fishermen on the bank of the Po River due to the drop in the water level, a consequence of the extreme drought. Dealing with the discovery was no simple task: around 3,000 residents of the vicinity were evacuated for the army-led operation.
The airspace was also closed, and navigation along that stretch was interrupted. The mayor of Borgo Virgilio, Francesco Aporti, told Reuters that residents were reluctant to leave their homes at first. “But in the last few days, we ended up convincing everyone.”
Engineers specializing in bomb disposal removed the fuse from the device, made in the United States. The Army said the projectile contained 240 kilograms of explosive. Then, the bomb squad transferred the artifact to a quarry in the municipality of Medole, 45 kilometers away, where it was finally destroyed.
Italy even declared a state of emergency for areas around the Po River, the country’s longest, in July. The river is responsible for irrigating about a third of Italian agricultural production, but is facing its worst drought in at least 70 years.
