Police investigate after second explosion in Cologne in three days

Authorities in Cologne are investigating after a second explosion in three days was reported in the western German city.

A spokesman for the public prosecutor's office said police were alerted early on Wednesday after witnesses heard a loud detonation at a clothing shop in the city centre.

The fire brigade quickly extinguished a fire in the building.

No injuries were reported, but authorities cordoned off the crime scene, which was littered with fragments of glass from the shattered windows.

It is unclear whether video surveillance footage of the latest explosion exists, a police spokesman said.

The incident came just two days after a similar explosion hit a nearby nightclub in the city, with police currently searching for a suspect who was caught on camera carrying a blue shopping bag which subsequently ignited.

Police are investigating whether the two incidents could be linked or connected to a spate of similar explosions in the state of North Rhine Westphalia that could be related to the Dutch Mocro Mafia gang.