Tens of thousands evacuated from 'red zone' after Second World War bomb discovered in Turin

Fifty thousand people were also told to leave their homes or stay inside, local media say

Turin defused a Second World War bomb after it was discovered on a construction site (La Repubblica / Youtube)

Turin evacuated thousands of citizens at the weekend as a bomb dating back to the Second World War was defused.

Around ten thousand people living in a “red zone” had to leave their homes, while 50,000 were told to either evacuate or stay in their property during the operation, according to local media.

The device was defused by bomb disposal experts and is being transported to a quarry in nearby Ciriè, according to city officials.

Air space and train lines were temporarily closed during the operation, which officials said was successfully completed.

The British device hailing from the Second World War was discovered on a construction side in central Turin on 22 November, according to local police.

Citizens were allowed to return to their houses in the afternoon as the northern Italian city returned to normal.

Italian authorities evacuated 4,000 from Bolzano as it defused a decades-old bomb.

Similarly, the Second World War bomb device was found by construction workers in the city in north Italy.