Glenthorne Road, Duryard/St James
26 February 2021 · Exeter, Devon
View this record on the map →- Date
- 26 February 2021
- Record type
- Found UXO
- Bomb weight
- 1,000kg
- Cordon radius
- 400m
- Casualties
- None reported
- People evacuated
- ~2,600
- Location
- Exeter, Devon
- Position accuracy
- Confirmed incident, approximate point (postcode-area estimate, not street-verified)
What happened
Construction workers uncovered a 1,000kg German WWII bomb next to a care home and student accommodation. An initial 100m cordon grew to 400m once a Royal Navy EOD team attended.
How it was made safe
Destroyed in situ, surrounded by more than 400 tonnes of sand — the blast still threw debris up to 250m.
Evacuation
Included around 1,400 University of Exeter students; some residents couldn't return for three nights, and the blast left some homes uninhabitable.
Also worth knowing
Exeter was hit in 19 wartime raids that dropped more than 7,000 bombs on the city — this device had lain undiscovered for nearly 80 years.