Explosive ordnance disposal in Potsdam: exclusion zone and explosions

Explosive ordnance specialists are preparing the defusal planned for the morning in the Groß Glienicke district of Potsdam. “From now on, the exclusion zone of 1,500 meters applies around the site of the discovery in the Groß Glienicker Heide,” the city administration announced at around 9.30 a.m. The exclusion zone around the Groß Glienicker Heide also extends to Berlin-Spandau. Around 700 people are said to be affected - around 150 of them from Berlin.

Accordingly, a large part of the ordnance from the Second World War - including bombs, grenades and hand grenades - has already been transported away. The remaining explosive ordnance found in the forest area should be blown up in four phases, said Mike Schwitzke from the Brandenburg State Explosive Ordnance Disposal Service.

Who is affected by the lockdown

The closure includes around 50 single-family houses in Spandau, the Gatow landscape cemetery, parts of the Rieselfelder and the Habichtswald. In Potsdam, the exclusion zone affects the following places: the Groß Glienicke forest settlement, the Preußenhalle, the State Office for the Environment, a shared accommodation facility and an assisted living facility. According to the map, the town of Seeburg in the municipality of Dallgow-Döberitz, which borders Groß Glienicke, is outside the exclusion zone.

How car traffic is affected

The defusing also affects traffic. According to the state capital Potsdam, Federal Highway 2 will be closed at around 9:30 a.m. Motorists will be redirected via Ritterfelddamm, Kladower Damm and Gatower Straße to Heerstraße. The state road to Seeburg and Falkensee is also closed from the roundabout in front of Groß Glienicke.

How public transport is affected

According to the state capital, bus lines 604 and 638 are also affected by the closures. Bus line 638 will run the diversions during the defusing, while line 604 will be canceled during this time. The state capital announced that the last bus on line 604 left the restricted area shortly after 9:30 a.m.

Explosive ordnance was probably brought into the forest in the summer of 1945

The ordnance is predominantly of German origin, but also comes from the Allies, as Mike Schwitzke from the Explosive Ordnance Disposal Service explained. They probably came from Gatow airfield and were taken to the forest area in the summer of 1945.