Military personnel are Tuesday preparing to defuse an unexploded World War Two bomb which prompted the evacuation of hundreds of families in east London.
The bomb which was discovered at a building site in Bethnal Green at around 12:45pm on Monday, forced the evacuation of 150 people from nearby homes and businesses.
Families were forced to spend the night at a local school after the 500lb device was discovered at Temple Street.
Tower Hamlets Council extended an exclusion zone around the bomb from 100 to 200 metres, leading to major traffic delays as several key roads were closed.
"We understand that this will cause inconvenience for a lot of residents," a council spokesman said late Monday.
Bomb disposal experts from 621 Squadron, 11 EOD Regiment, Royal Logistics Corps, with experience in Iraq, Northern Ireland and Afghanistan, were called to defuse the ageing munition.
The bomb is believed to have been dropped over London during German air raids in the early 1940s. afp