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| WW2 bomb detonated safely near M6 in Birmingham | WW2 bomb detonated safely near M6 in Birmingham |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| A 250kg World War Two bomb that has shut a major route in Birmingham for two days has been detonated. | A 250kg World War Two bomb that has shut a major route in Birmingham for two days has been detonated. |
| The closure of the A38(M) Aston Expressway caused long delays for drivers, cancelled rail services and led to the evacuation of hundreds of homes. | The closure of the A38(M) Aston Expressway caused long delays for drivers, cancelled rail services and led to the evacuation of hundreds of homes. |
| Residents slept in a gym overnight as a police cordon was put in place. | Residents slept in a gym overnight as a police cordon was put in place. |
| Thirteen lorry loads of sand created an "igloo" around the device before it was detonated at about 15:30 BST. | Thirteen lorry loads of sand created an "igloo" around the device before it was detonated at about 15:30 BST. |
| Exit and entry slip roads of the M6 at junction six, Spaghetti Junction, were closed on Monday morning because of the operation. | |
| More updates on this story | More updates on this story |
| Traffic police also shut the motorway between junction four near Coleshill and seven at Great Barr while the detonation was carried out. | |
| Highways England said the M6 had since reopened. The A38 remains closed but it is hoped it too will be reopened "as soon as possible". | |
| A 500m-cordon was set up by police after the device was discovered in Priory Road, Aston, at about 09:45 BST on Monday. | A 500m-cordon was set up by police after the device was discovered in Priory Road, Aston, at about 09:45 BST on Monday. |
| Home and businesses were evacuated and London Midland rail services on the Cross City Line between Lichfield and Birmingham New Street were suspended. | Home and businesses were evacuated and London Midland rail services on the Cross City Line between Lichfield and Birmingham New Street were suspended. |
| About 80 people were forced to spend the night in a temporary rest centre, the Red Cross said. | |
| Mike Luedicke, deputy commander of the Army's UK bomb disposal unit who co-ordinated the operation, said the team was "very confident it was a classic Second World War German air drop bomb". | Mike Luedicke, deputy commander of the Army's UK bomb disposal unit who co-ordinated the operation, said the team was "very confident it was a classic Second World War German air drop bomb". |
| He said it had been a particularly "complex" case because the fuses were "on the underside and pressed into the earth and so our process of identification and diagnostics has been a real challenge". | He said it had been a particularly "complex" case because the fuses were "on the underside and pressed into the earth and so our process of identification and diagnostics has been a real challenge". |
| After the explosion, people started using social media to say they heard the blast from several miles away. | |
| Police thanked residents and motorists for their patience and praised the bravery of the bomb disposal experts who had been at the site overnight making the device safe. | |
| Residents said they had been told by police they could be out of their homes until about 18:00. | |
| Paige Collins, of Aston, and her 10-month-old daughter, were among those who spent the night at Alexander Stadium in Perry Barr. | |
| She slept for about "an hour" on a mat and sheet in a "dusty gym" after putting her daughter to sleep in her pushchair. |