The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) has released footage of the controlled explosion of a recently discovered WWII bomb in Newtownards, Co Down.
PSNI said that yesterday afternoon, Tuesday, August 20, at approximately 3:38pm, Ammunition Technical Officers carried out a controlled explosion of a bomb that had been discovered in the Rivenwood area of Newtownards, Co Down on Thursday, August 15.
The item found was confirmed to be a German SC500 kg World War Two bomb and is understood to have been around 83 years old, PSNI said.
"Even though this was a historic piece of munition, the bomb still carried a significant risk to public safety and a highly complex evacuation operation was prompted."
The evacuation operation, which saw more than 400 homes evacuated, began on Saturday.
PSNI said on Tuesday evening that following three days of operational activity to make the area safe, residents could return to their homes.
Earlier on Tuesday, PSNI Superintendent Johnston McDowell confirmed that the munition would be dealt with "on-site" as opposed to being removed.
He reiterated that there was "a risk of death or serious injury to anyone who does not leave the area if they have been instructed to do so."
The PSNI does not appear to have publicly announced when the controlled explosion was due to occur.
Some people took to social media on Tuesday to share reports of a "loud bang" that was heard in Bangor, Millisle, and Donaghadee, questioning if it was the bomb.
After the controlled explosion, James Fraser, the developer of the Rivenwood site where the bomb was discovered last week, told the BBC that the Army had informed him that some solar panels had been damaged on the nearby homes due to the controlled explosion, but no windows were broken.
Fraser had told BBC News NI on Monday that a groundwork contractor was digging a service trench about 1.5m deep when he noticed "something that didn't look right."
He said the contractor spoke to a supervisor who was able to identify the device as a wartime bomb and contacted the PSNI.
Experts had speculated that the piece of munition is German and landed in Newtownards during the Belfast Blitz of 1941.
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