Navy

Royal Navy Detonates World War Two Bomb Found In Thames

The Royal Navy has disposed of a Second World War bomb found near the Houses of Parliament in the River Thames.

The bomb had been found by a dredger operating in the Thames near Victoria Embankment.

The operation by the Royal Navy and Metropolitan Police to recover the unexploded bomb led to disruption in central London last night.

Lieutenant Mike St Pierre, the officer who led the bomb disposal team on scene, said:

"It was a long night for me and the team but this is exactly what we are trained for so it was a successful operation, although it was a little surreal carrying out our job right next to the Houses of Parliament."

"I’d like to thank the authorities who worked with us so well on this operation, particularly the Met Police. The bomb itself was in good condition considering how old it was, and it clearly still presented a danger.

"We removed it from the barge and towed it along the Thames, working very closely with the Met Police to safely close off bridges as we went, until we were sure we could detonate it safely."

The device was identified as a German SD 50kg bomb, an armour-piercing variety which would have been dropped from an aircraft.

Commander Del McKnight, Commanding Officer of the Royal Navy's Fleet Diving Squadron, said:

"Royal Navy divers are on standby at 10 minutes notice around the UK to deal with these things, so last night was very much business as usual for my team."

"They did an excellent job, responding quickly to the incident and ensuring smooth running of the operation to make sure the public were kept safe throughout. This sort of ordnance, while old, does still present a serious threat which is why the Royal Navy is always ready to respond and dispose of them."

The Waterloo and Westminster bridges were forced to shut for several hours, Westminster underground station closed and river traffic halted after the device was dredged up near the Victoria Embankment.

The riverfront remained closed until around 3am on Friday morning as the device was removed.

Large crowds of tourists and passers-by had gathered at the police tape with some calmly taking photographs of the odd sight.

Scotland Yard said specialist officers had assessed the device and alerted the Royal Navy after they were called to the River Thames at 5.15pm on Thursday.