Unexploded WWII bomb found in Portsmouth harbor

An unexploded German 500kg bomb (WWII) was found on the seabed in Portsmouth Harbor on September 29, the Royal Navy has informed.

Bomb disposal experts towed the device into open waters 1.5 miles east of the Isle of Wight during the night to dispose of it in a controlled explosion.

The device was located by a barge carrying out dredging works preparing the naval base for the arrival of the Navy’s new 65,000-tonne aircraft carrier – HMS Queen Elizabeth – next spring.

The navy said the controlled explosion would likely be carried out in daylight hours early Friday, September 30.

Dredging operations at the HMNB Portsmouth naval base also unearthed an iron canon of unknown age and identity in February this year.