A MAN has been killed and eight other people injured by a Second World War bomb which exploded in the German town twinned with Basingstoke.
The explosion at a construction site in Euskirchen reportedly happened when a digger accidentally struck the bomb during evacuation work.
The operator of the digger died instantly.
The incident in the town, which has been linked with Basingstoke since 1986 and is 15 miles south of Cologne, happened at around 1.30pm local time (12.30pm GMT), and also damaged office buildings and cars.
The explosion shattered shop windows nearby, and could be heard 16 miles away in Bonn.
The bomb, which has been undetected for more than 70 years, is thought to be one of thousands dropped by Allied forces on the Euskirchen area in 1944.
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