The German city of Cologne has finished evacuating 20,500 people, its largest evacuation order since World War II, after officials defused three massive, unexploded bombs.

Authorities in Cologne closed off a large section of the city center Wednesday, evacuating homes and businesses and shuttering tourist spots, as experts worked to defuse three unexploded mega-bombs from World War II.

Thousands of people were evacuated from central Cologne in western Germany on Wednesday following the discovery of three wartime bombs, in what the city authority called the largest such operation since the end of World War Two.