500kg German Bomb Found in Portsmouth Harbour

A suspected 500kg German bomb has been found on the seabed at Portsmouth Harbour, the second piece of ordnance found this month during dredging operations ahead of the arrival of the new Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier. A WWII torpedo was discovered back on the 10th of September.

The two finds demonstrate the prudence of being vigilant whilst undertaking dredging works, with underwater cameras identifying the items before encounter.

Portsmouth was heavily bombed during WWII and has remained an important base for the Royal Navy for several centuries, making its harbour a more likely place to encounter Unexploded Ordnance (UXO) than in many other parts of the country.

The 500kg device was towed into open waters off the Isle of Wight and destroyed in a controlled explosion by an EOD team.