Latest news with #RhineRiver
South China Morning Post
6 days ago
- General
- South China Morning Post
World War II bombs defused in German city's biggest post-war evacuation
Three unexploded US bombs from World War II were defused on Wednesday in Cologne after the German city's biggest evacuation since the end of the war. Advertisement More than 20,000 residents were evacuated from the city centre earlier Wednesday after the bombs were unearthed on Monday during preparatory work for road construction. Experts defused the bombs within about an hour, city authorities said in a statement. Even 80 years after the end of the war, unexploded bombs dropped during wartime air raids are frequently found in Germany. Sometimes, large-scale precautionary evacuations are needed. The location this time was unusually prominent – just across the Rhine River from Cologne's historic centre. A cordoned off area near the Cologne Cathedral. Photo: Reuters TV The evacuations included homes, 58 hotels, nine schools, a hospital and two nursing homes, several museums and office buildings and the Messe/Deutz railway station.
Fox News
6 days ago
- General
- Fox News
WWII bombs found in European city force massive evacuation operation
More than 20,000 residents were forced to evacuate their homes on Wednesday in Germany after three World War II-era bombs were discovered. The operation would take the bomb squad hours to complete their task. The three bombs were discovered during exploratory work in the German city of Cologne on Monday, resulting in what officials called the largest evacuation of the city since the end of World War II, the Associated Press reported. According to a news release by city officials, two American 20-hundredweight bombs and one American 10-hundredweight bomb with impact fuses needed to be defused. This operation prompted the evacuation of 20,500 residents from their homes in order to prepare for the operation. The Düsseldorf district government's explosive ordnance disposal service was activated to defuse the three 80-year-old bombs. The evacuation also shut down numerous businesses, including the Eduardus Hospital, two retirement homes, the Cologne Messe/Deutz train station, schools and more. Roadways were shut down and shipping lanes along the Rhine River were suspended. Just after 7 p.m. local time, city officials posted on Facebook that the job was completed. "The three World War II bombs in Deutz have been defused. At 7:19 p.m., the three unexploded bombs that had paralyzed large parts of the city were defused," the post read. "The closed streets and bridges are now gradually being reopened, and residents can return to their homes or are being brought back by ambulance or shuttle buses." According to the National WWII Museum in New Orleans, Cologne was a frequent target for Allied air raids, with the first of 262 happening on a May 17, 1940, Royal Air Force bombing mission. During that time, 770,000 residents evacuated the city, leaving about 20,000 or so behind. The final bombardment was on March 2, 1945. American tanks entered the city a few days later.
CBS News
6 days ago
- General
- CBS News
3 World War II bombs defused in a German city's biggest evacuation since the end of the war
Three unexploded U.S. bombs from World War II were defused on Wednesday in Cologne after the German city's biggest evacuation since the end of the war. The bombs were unearthed on Monday during preparatory work for road construction. City authorities said that the discovered unexploded ordnances were two American 20-ton bombs and one American 10-ton bomb, each with impact fuses. More than 20,000 residents were evacuated Wednesday from the city center. Experts defused the bombs within about an hour, city authorities said in a statement. Even 80 years after the end of the war, unexploded bombs dropped during wartime air raids are frequently found in Germany. Sometimes, large-scale precautionary evacuations are needed. The location this time was unusually prominent - just across the Rhine River from Cologne's historic center. One of the three unexploded bombs from the Second World War is fenced off with screens as specialists prepare to defuse them in Cologne, Tuesday, June 3, 2025. Thomas Banneyer / AP Significantly bigger evacuations have occurred in other German cities. The evacuations included homes, 58 hotels, nine schools, a hospital and two nursing homes, several museums and office buildings and the Messe/Deutz train station. It also included three bridges across the Rhine, including the heavily used Hohenzollern railway bridge, which leads into Cologne's central station. Shipping on the Rhine was also suspended. Clearance to go ahead with defusing the bombs was delayed somewhat because one person in the historic center initially refused to leave their home, city authorities said. Bombs from World War II have been discovered on battlefields and cities where fighting took place, often decades after the war ended. In March, a World War II bomb was found near the tracks of Paris' Gare du Nord station. In February, more than 170 bombs were found near a children's playground in northern England. And in October 2024, a World War II bomb exploded at a Japanese airport.
CBS News
20-05-2025
- General
- CBS News
WWII veteran among those honoring Colorado's fallen this Memorial Day
At a spry 101 years of age, Howard Berger exudes pure joy. "I'll be going on 102 if I make it to November 12," he said with a smile. He's also a true American hero. "I did my best," Berger said. Howard Berger Howard Berger It's been more than eight decades since he served with the U.S. Army in World War II, yet he remembers it all as clear as day. "We were in a forest, and we saw a German spotter plane," Berger recalled. "The Germans shelled our area… and the bombs would hit trees, and splinters would go all over. Seven of my men were hit. I was away from my foxhole when the bombs started coming over, so I jumped into a foxhole, but it wasn't my foxhole. I was in somebody else's, and I jumped on top of him and scared the dickens out of him, but I didn't get hurt, fortunately." Berger's military service began the day after his 19th birthday, on November 13, 1942. Following in the footsteps of his father, who served as a machine gunner during World War I, Berger chose to serve in the Army. After two years of basic training in New Jersey, Georgia, and Louisiana, 21-year-old Staff Sergeant Berger was shipped off to Europe as part of the 580th Anti-Aircraft Artillery Battalion. "Went over on the Queen Elizabeth, a boatload of 15,000 troops. Terrible trip. Weather was terrible, cold," he said. By the spring of 1945, Berger's unit reached the Rhine River in Germany. What he remembers most from that time still breaks his heart to this day. "I get mail, an envelope, telling me my," pausing as he chokes up with tears, "My best friend was killed." CBS News Colorado's Kelly Werthmann with WWII vet Howard Berger. CBS Private First-Class Harold Marin, one of Berger's closest friends from their school days together in New York, was killed in action in Belgium. "I got my rifle out, I was looking for Germans to shoot," Berger said through tears, explaining his urge for revenge. "Fortunately, I didn't find any… but it was a tough time." As another Memorial Day approaches, Berger is holding his fallen friends close to his heart. "A lot of our troops were killed. Friends were killed on D-Day. They were running and just murdered right on the beaches," he said, holding back more tears. "So, I pay respect to them, and I honor them. Those are the heroes." Those heroes will also be honored at the Colorado Freedom Memorial in Aurora this weekend. That is where Berger will join other WWII veterans, local and state leaders, and families in paying tribute to generations of Colorado's fallen servicemembers and those still serving today. "We appreciate being acknowledged and not forgotten, and that's important," said Berger. "We should never forget." And, Berger said, when his time comes to join his late wife, Dorothy, who served with the U.S. Marine Corps and is interred at Fort Logan National Cemetery, he hopes he, too, won't be forgotten. Howard Berger CBS "I want to be remembered as helping others," he said. "I am very proud of being a WWII veteran because I'm alive… and I helped serve the troops after the war was over… We got to remember them, and I do." Additional Information from the Colorado Freedom Memorial: Presented by the City of Aurora and the Colorado Freedom Memorial Foundation, festivities begin at 8 a.m. Saturday with a free pancake breakfast and music. The Remembrance Ceremony begins at 10 a.m. and will feature an F-16 flyover by the 140th Wing of the Colorado Air National Guard, comments from Colorado Senators Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper, Congressman Jason Crow, and Aurora Mayor Mike Coffman, and recognition of all WWII veterans who may be in attendance. A proclamation from Gov. Jared Polis will also be read. Agenda for Saturday, May 24: 8 - 10 a.m. Free Pancake Breakfast, donations to CFM welcome Music by All American Big Band Military artifact exhibits 10 - 11:30 a.m. Colorado Remembers Ceremony F-16 Flyover Tolling of Honor Bell Wreath Laying 11:30 a.m. - 1 p.m. Military Vehicle Collectors of Colorado Vehicles on display History Colorado Exhibit While donations are accepted, the entire day's events are free and open to the public. The Colorado Freedom Memorial is located at Aurora's Memorial Park at 756 Telluride St.
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Eurovison host Basel: Just a dull pharma industry hub with some art?
It all begins at the Joggelihalle, as locals call the St Jakobshalle – an iconic example of 1970s Brutalism in Switzerland. With its exposed concrete, sharp lines and overhanging roof, this venue in the outskirts of Basel is set to provide a stark contrast to the screaming colours and flaming-piano pyrotechnics of the Eurovision Song Contest when it plays host from May 10-17. Its cold concrete and unwelcoming facade is representative of why, to many travellers heading south to Italy or onwards to the Swiss Alps, it's easy to simply speed through without giving this city a second glance. After all, Basel's industrial legacy still looms large. With a long history as a centre for textiles and chemicals industries, the city is often associated with an industrial skyline, grey highways and smoking chimneys. But Basel's image is being redefined. The Rhine River, once tainted by industry, is now even clean enough to swim in. Cleaning up a grubby image Yves Parrat, chemist with the local health department, says that the water quality is regularly checked at three different points during the bathing season. The city has designated swimming areas, including near the Tinguely Museum. You can also borrow waterproof bags, called Wickelfisch, from the tourist information centre if you want to take a dip in the river. First-time visitors to the city centre may be surprised by its medieval charm, with historic buildings that offer a window into the past. The striking red-painted façade of the town hall is a standout landmark, while the view from the "Pfalz" terrace at the nearby cathedral (Basler Münster) provides a stunning panorama the river, where the Rhine takes a bend east toward Lake Constance. While Basel is a global powerhouse in the pharmaceutical industry, it's also home to some of the most iconic office and laboratory buildings. Basel is widely regarded as Switzerland's architectural capital. According to the city's marketing team, Basel and its surroundings boast 13 winners of the Pritzker Prize, a prestigious international award for architects. Switzerland's tallest building: A modern marvel Surprising to many, Switzerland's tallest building isn't found in Zurich or Bern, but in Basel along the banks of the Rhine River. Standing at 205 metres, Roche Tower 2, a twin-tower office complex for the pharmaceutical giant Roche, replaced the original Roche Tower as the country's tallest in 2022. Designed by Herzog & de Meuron, the tower is just a stone's throw from the river promenade and nestled near Basel's historic workers' housing estates. Novartis, Roche's main competitor, has a campus that reads like a who's who of international architecture. Alongside Herzog & de Meuron, architects like Frank Gehry, Richard Serra, SANAA, and local firm Diener & Diener have left their mark on the city's skyline. In Basel, industry, art, and architecture converge, and visitors will also find a vibrant museum scene, with institutions like the Swiss Architecture Museum. The city, Switzerland's third-largest, is home to over 200,000 residents from nearly 170 nations. Art enthusiasts will find plenty to explore, including the Museum Tinguely, located right next to Roche's headquarters. The museum, designed by Swiss architect Mario Botta, celebrates the work of Jean Tinguely, a Basel artist known for creating huge machine sculptures from scrap metal whose sole purpose is to have no purpose. Sponsorship from the pharmaceutical industry and banks On Cathedral Hill, the Barfüsserkirche houses the Basel Historical Museum, offering a deep dive into the city's cultural heritage at the crossroads of Switzerland, Germany and France. Just a short walk away, the opulent Kunstmuseum combines old and new architecture, with a 100-million-Swiss-franc underground extension. The museum showcases masterpieces from old masters like Holbein, Rembrandt and Rubens, to modern icons such as Gauguin, van Gogh, Picasso, Lichtenstein and Warhol - an impressive collection made possible by generous sponsorship from the pharmaceutical and banking industries. For those with an industrial romantic streak, Basel's Dreispitz area just outside the city centre is a must-see. Once home to the city's bonded warehouses, this now vibrant district hosts a dynamic mix of studios, universities, architecture firms and museums. Among them is the House of Electronic Arts (HEK), exploring the social impact of new media and digital art, and the Kunsthaus Baselland, which opened in 2024. It's a hidden gem that some Eurovision fans and travellers speeding past on the motorway might not expect to find.
