TAIPEI – A Taiwanese army unit on Monday removed a “corroded” unexploded 227-kilogram bomb from a construction site for a TSMC semiconductor plant in the island’s south, authorities said. 

The “severely corroded” bomb was found at the Nanzih Technology Industrial Park in Kaohsiung where the Taiwanese chipmaking giant is building a new fabrication plant.

Construction workers were briefly evacuated from the site while the army bomb disposal unit recovered the bomb. 

The 500-pound bomb appeared to be from an “early period” but its exact vintage could not be determined due to its “unclear serial number”, 8th Field Army spokeswoman Kung Chiung-yu told AFP.

The bomb was later taken to a secure storage facility where it will be destroyed, Kung said.

The area where the bomb was found had been used by the Japanese Navy as a fuel plant during World War II and it was later converted into a refinery, according to Taiwan’s Bureau of Cultural Heritage’s website. 

“Regarding the findings from the excavation at TSMC’s Kaohsiung site this morning, we prioritise the safety of on-site personnel and will collaborate with the relevant authorities to adhere to the prescribed procedures,” TSMC said in a statement.

In August, a 454-kilogram (1,000 pound) unexploded bomb was found in the same area, the army said previously. –AFP