A World War Two bomb found during construction work at Sandy Lane Business Park in Coventry on Tuesday afternoon forced an evacuation and put a 100-metre cordon around the site. Emergency teams covered the device in tonnes of sand and left a controlled explosion for Wednesday afternoon.
Ninety-six homes around the site were evacuated on Tuesday evening, and police warned nearby residents to expect a loud bang when the detonation happens. The discovery has turned a normal building day into a safety operation in a part of the city now being prepared for new housing.
The bomb was found on land that was once home to the Daimler factory during World War Two, a site tied to Coventry’s wartime industry. Planning documents submitted in October 2024 proposed up to 250 homes around the Daimler Powerhouse, a former factory building that is now used as a creative hub.
Coventry historian Pete Walters said Daimler and other local firms were targeted because they were involved in war production. He said the factory at Radford was set on fire in one air raid and became one of the biggest industrial fires of the war, a reminder of how deeply the city was hit.
The Explosive Ordnance Disposal Team has now withdrawn from the construction site, but the work has not simply moved on. The bomb is still being managed under the cordon, and the return of residents depends on a detonation that is expected to happen on Wednesday afternoon.
Mary Creagh said the episode shows how the past still reaches into the present, saying 85 years after the Blitz the legacy of World War Two is still disrupting daily life in Coventry. It is a sharp reminder that even as the city pushes ahead with regeneration, the ground itself can still bring the war back into view.
