Engineers remove masts from bomb-laden WWII wreck in Thames without triggering explosion

Summary

Ministers have announced that the sunken US wartime ship SS Richard Montgomery, which sank in 1944 with about 1,400 tonnes of munitions on board, is slightly safer after engineers removed its masts. The wreck in the Thames estuary holds enough unexploded bombs to devastate a Kent coastal town and send a tidal wave through London, and it has been kept under constant guard for decades. The mast removal did not trigger the feared explosion.

Timeline

1. The Guardian

   19 Oct 2026, 16:21 UTCSource ↗

   The Guardian reports that engineers removed the masts of the SS Richard Montgomery, a second world war cargo ship that sank in 1944 with about 1,400 tonnes of munitions on board, without triggering the feared explosion, and that ministers announced the wreck is now slightly safer.