COLOGNE (dpa-AFX) - In Cologne, an estimated 20,000 people will have to leave their homes on Wednesday because three World War II bombs have to be defused. It is one of the largest evacuations in recent years, said a spokeswoman for the city of Cologne.
Hotels, museums, and RTL must also be evacuated.
The evacuation area includes museums such as the Museum Ludwig and the Wallraf-Richartz Museum, as well as large companies such as the television station RTL. RTL plans to broadcast its morning shows "Punkt 6" and "Punkt 7" live from its broadcasting center in the Deutz district, but "Punkt 8" will be canceled. The building will be completely evacuated by 8:00 a.m., a spokeswoman said. In general, all RTL Deutschland employees at the Cologne site will work directly from their mobile offices on that day, as far as possible. The programs "Punkt 12," "RTL Aktuell," and "RTL Nachtjournal" will be broadcast live from the capital studio in Berlin. "All other programs will be pre-recorded to ensure that everything runs smoothly," the spokeswoman said. The daily TV program of ntv will be produced in Cologne-Ossendorf starting at 7:00 a.m.
The entire old town of Cologne will also be within the exclusion zone. Fifty-eight hotels and other accommodation providers will have to be evacuated.
Three bridges over the Rhine will also have to be closed. The Cologne-Messe/Deutz train station, Cologne City Hall and its branch on the Deutz side, a hospital, and two nursing and retirement homes will also be evacuated. Cologne Cathedral is just outside the evacuation area.
The bombs are two American 20-centner bombs and one American 10-centner bomb. They were discovered on Monday.
Bomb disposal is nothing unusual in Cologne, which was one of the most heavily bombed cities in World War II. The first "Thousand Bomber Raid" by the British Royal Air Force on a German city took place on the night of May 30-31, 1942. /cd/DP/mis
