WWII 2,000LB DEVICE DETONATED IN THE MIDDLE OF BRITISH CITY EXETER

British city, Exeter, experienced a humbling event recently. The city's residents may not be able to return to their homes after a Second World War bomb was detonated on Friday.

Police added that, due to the event, it is "impossible to predict" whether safety assessment work would be concluded.

A 2,204 pound "Hermann" bomb was detonated in a part of Exeter. The residents in that area were told they may not be able to return home by Sunday evening. The bomb is believed to be one used by the Nazis in World War II. 

It was discovered on a building site on private land to the west of the University of Exeter campus on the same morning of the explosion. Following the discovery, residents of about 2,600 properties around Glenthorne Road, including 1,400 university students, were evacuated.

One of the politics, philosophy and economics students, Fran Henderson, was told to pack at 7pm on the Friday before being transported to a hotel outside of Exeter Saturday afternoon. She added that she had been informed it was "most likely" that she would be able to return to her student residence on Sunday.

"The site is about 120 metres away from our accommodation."

The controlled detonation of the WWII bomb took place at 6.10pm on Saturday. The explosion was heard up to six miles away, and it caused severe damage to surrounding properties.

The day after the explosion, Devon and Cornwall Police advised residents to plan for the eventuality that they would not be able to return home that evening.

Police stated, "Regrettably, a number of properties predominantly within the 110-yard cordon have suffered structural damage including broken windows and cracked walls. In addition, debris, including large metal objects, were thrown in the blast, some of which landed on nearby roofs, which require the use of a crane to remove."

The Royal Navy bomb disposal team took over the operation and requested that the 110-yard cordon be extended to 440 yards on Saturday. 

Police allowed those who were evacuated from between 110-yards and 440-yards back to their homes at 6pm.

Authorities had to use a crane to remove large pieces of metal from nearby homes. These large metal sections were used by the Army to mitigate the bomb when it was detonated. They could clearly be seen blasting up into the air when the bomb was blown up.

Several people shared their experience, with one person on Twitter saying, "It shook me over six miles away! Thought another large tree branch had fallen on my house." 

Another added, "Something I thought I'd never see or hear. A #WW2 #bomb detonating in Glenthorpe road, #exeter. I was in #belvederefields, about 350m and could still see the plume from the explosion. Amazing."

Be sure to watch the explosion, overseen by military experts, in The Sun video below.