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Unexploded 1-Ton Bomb Found Near Osaka's Otaroad
posted on by Crystalyn Hodgkins
A construction worker found an unexploded one-ton bomb on the construction site for a new apartment building on Monday near Osaka's Nankai Namba Station. The bomb is confirmed to be American made and measures 60 centimeters (about 2 feet) in diameter and 180 centimeters (about 6 feet) in length.
The construction worker had found the bomb at 10 a.m. two meters underground. The Japan Ground Self Defense Forces covered the bomb in a fireproof sheet and covered the still in-tact fuse with a safety cap on Monday. Local authorities are currently considering how to dispose of the bomb and whether or not to restrict entry to a larger area around the discovery site.
In February 2013, a similar unexploded bomb was found in Osaka's Kita ward. At that time, the authorities decided to evacuate all buildings within a 300 meter radius and block off the area.
The newly discovered bomb is right next to Otaroad, Osaka's equivalent of Akihabara. If the Osaka government decides to enact a similar restriction as in February 2013, most of the entirety of Otaroad, including the Animate and Gamers! stores, would be temporarily shut down.
Osaka's largest anime event, the Nipponbashi Street Festival, is slated for this Saturday. The highlight of the festival is a cosplay parade along Otaroad (photo above right is from last year's festival). The festival's staff have not yet said whether the festival will still be held.
On August 14, 1945, one day before the end of World War II, the U.S. army dropped 843 one-ton bombs on Osaka.
Sources: Sankei Shimbun, Yahoo! News via My Game News Flash
