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Five WWII Bombs Discovered in German City Lead to Evacuation of 50,000 Residents

City officials say two suspected bombs were found at a construction site and three more nearby.
Image: A police officer helps an old woman of the district Vahrenwald in Hanover, central Germany, during the evacuation on May 7, 2017.
A police officer helps an old woman of the district Vahrenwald in Hanover, central Germany, during the evacuation on May 7, 2017.Peter Steffen / AFP - Getty Images
/ Source: Associated Press

FRANKFURT, Germany — German authorities are evacuating around 50,000 people from their homes in the northern city of Hannover while five suspected aerial bombs from World War II were made safe for removal.

City officials say two suspected bombs were found at a construction site and three more were then discovered nearby.

Image: A police officer helps an old woman of the district Vahrenwald in Hanover, central Germany, during the evacuation on May 7, 2017.
A police officer helps an old woman of the district Vahrenwald in Hanover, central Germany, during the evacuation on May 7, 2017.Peter Steffen / AFP - Getty Images

Leaflets in German, Polish, Turkish, English and Russian were delivered door-to-door to make sure everyone had evacuated on Sunday.

The city's museums were opened for free and the senior citizen's agency organized an afternoon Scrabble and card-playing gathering so evacuated residents would have places to go.

Authorities say they hope people will be able to return to their homes by evening.