BARCELONA: A bomb dating back to Spain’s 1930s civil war was detonated on Monday near the beach in Barcelona where it was discovered at the weekend, prompting the evacuation of sunbathers, police said.

The bomb contained 70 kilogrammes (150 pounds) of trinitrotoluene, a “highly volatile” substance, forcing explosives experts to move it one nautical mile away at sea, a spokeswoman for the Civil Guard police force said.

Using diving lifting bags, designed to move objects underwater, they eventually detonated the bomb at a depth of 45 metres (150 feet), she added.

According to Barcelona city hall, the bomb dated back to the civil war during which the Mediterranean city suffered numerous bombings by the Italian air force that supported general Francisco Franco’s nationalists, who eventually won the conflict.The Civil Guard police say the bomb, containing 70 kilogrammes of TNT, was taken out some two kilometers (1.2 miles) offshore on Monday and safely detonated at a depth of 45 meters.

It was discovered on Sunday about 25 meters (80 feet) off the Sant Sebasti beach, lying in three meters (nearly 10 feet) of water. The beach was evacuated in the early afternoon when it was full of people.

Police said the bomb dated from 1936, at the start of the three-year Spanish Civil War.

Published in Dawn, August 27th, 2019