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WWII German bomb destroyed in open water

A controlled explosion took place at 4pm today off the coast of the Isle of Wight Credit: Royal Navy

A German 500lb bomb found in Portsmouth Harbour has been destroyed by Royal Navy bomb disposal experts.

The WWII device was found at 5am this morning by a barge dredging the harbour ahead of the arrival next spring of HMS Queen Elizabeth – the Royal Navy’s new 65,000-tonne aircraft carrier.

The bomb was towed out to open waters 1.5 miles east of the Isle of Wight where a controlled explosion took place at 4pm today.

“This is the third piece of historic ordnance found in the harbour during the dredging works since September. We worked closely with Hampshire Police and Portsmouth City Council to ensure we dealt with this incident in the safest way possible, at the same time causing least disruption to the city.”

– Captain of Portsmouth Naval Base, Captain Bill Oliphant

“Everything went smoothly and we were pleased to be able to get the operation completed in daylight today. Despite being old, these devices still pose a very serious threat when they are moved.”

– Commander Del McKnight