Berlin: Three experts working to defuse a bomb
from World War II were killed when the device exploded,
injuring six others, police said on Wednesday.
Some 7,000 residents from around the area in the central
German town of Goettingen, where the 1100-pound (500-kilogram)
heavy bomb was found, were still being evacuated when it blew
up late yesterday.
Construction workers had found the 65-year-old explosive
device about seven yards (meters) below the ground on an empty
where the city is currently building a sport arena.
The three dead men, aged 38 to 55, were experienced in
defusing bombs and it was not clear why it exploded,
Goettingen Police President Robert Kruse said at a press
conference today. He said two other experts were severely
injured and four others were treated for shock.
City spokesman Detlef Johannson said team was still
preparing to remove the detonator when the bomb exploded.
Unexploded bombs from Allied bombardments and World War I
are found regularly in Germany. Only a few days before,
another bomb was found in Goettingen was successfully defused.
Every German state has dozens of specialists trained to
defuse old bombs, and accidents are rare. Hundreds of police
and fire fighters are usually involved in helping evacuate
people before experts attempt to defuse a bomb.
PTI
