Giant wartime bomb removed from major Hanoi river

Soldiers and divers successfully removed a huge wartime bomb from the Red River in Hanoi on Tuesday afternoon and are preparing to dispose of what could have been a threat to travelers on the major river and people and trains on Long Bien Bridge just overhead.

A huge bomb left from the Vietnam War was recovered from the Red River in Hanoi on Tuesday. Photos by VnExpress

Two divers spent half an hour recovering the bomb, which was lying six meters (20 feet) under water. The device, measuring around 2.25 meters in length (more than seven feet) and 0.6 meters in diameter, was detected by local people around 10 days ago.

Divers confirmed that it was an undetonated bomb and marked its location on Monday, saying it was five meters from one of the bridge's pillars and 200 meters from the shore.

Soldiers tow the bomb to shore.

Soldiers towed it to shore before it was picked up by a crane and carried away by military truck.

The operation drew a big crowd to the bridge, even though it was supposed to be closed at the time.

People watch the recovery mission from Long Bien Bridge.

Decades after the Vietnam War ended, unexploded ordnance still threatens a fifth of the country’s land mass and explosions occur frequently, killing more than 1,500 people every year and maiming and injuring 2,200 more, according to official data.

The iconic Long Bien Bridge is 114 years old and was severely damaged by multiple American bombings between 1965 and 1972. It was the only way of crossing the Red River at the time.

The 2,290-meter bridge, which was renovated in 1973 and 2015, has a single-track railway in the middle with bike and pedestrian lanes on either side.