Fatal accident during a V2 dismantling

By 30 April 1945, the war was over for Holten. Its residents began rebuilding homes and farms, and Allied troops were still coming and going, transporting equipment and supplies.

Around 11 a.m. on that day, five soldiers of the British 24th Bomb Disposal Company were working on dismantling a V2 rocket. They were driving a Bomb Disposal Lorry at the intersection of Markeloseweg and Rijssenseweg, towing the explosive part of the V2 behind the vehicle — a highly unusual procedure.

Corporal James Patrick Coyne was seated on the V2 while soldiers walked beside it. Suddenly, a massive explosion occurred. When the dust settled, six people had died: five soldiers from the Bomb Disposal Company and 23-year-old Corrie Lepelaar from Leiden. During the war, Corrie had been placed with the Ten Velde family in Holten. Though she could have returned home, she chose to stay a while longer to help Mrs. Ten Velde, who was expecting a child. Corrie was buried at the Old Cemetery in Holten.

Corporal Coyne's body was never recovered. Soldiers John Edward Harris and George Edward Wareing were buried at the general cemetery in Almelo, while Leslie Cotton and John Swarbeck McWhinnie were laid to rest at the Canadian War Cemetery in Groesbeek. The explosion heavily damaged five houses, and many others sustained minor damage. The cause of the accident remains unknown.