Cordon lifted after Royal Navy bomb disposal team called to West Street, Fareham as shopping precinct is evacuated by police
and live on Freeview channel 276
Bomb disposal experts from the Royal Navy have been scrambled to the West Street to tackle the ongoing situation.
Police have enforced a 100m cordon of the popular shopping district.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdIt follows the discovery of a suspicious package, Hampshire Constabulary confirmed.
See our live blog below for more coverage of the incident
Footage from the scene shows hundreds of shoppers having been evacuated from the scene.
Police were called just after 12pm and the cordon was lifted at around 4pm.
A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron
You can subscribe here for unlimited access to our online coverage, including Pompey, with 70 per cent fewer adverts for less than 20p a day.
LIVE UPDATES: Fareham town centre evacuated over suspect package
Key Events
- Cordon lifted at 4pm
- Royal Navy bomb disposal on scene
- Hundreds of shoppers evacuated
Police were called at 12.16pm
The incident is still playing out with police, firefighters and the ambulance service on scene. Royal Navy bomb disposal experts are there for the suspect package
'We were told to evacuate’
Jo Satherley, a member of the library staff, and Mandy Watmough, from the school library service, are waiting to see if they can go back in the library building, which is taped off. Speaking to our reporter Emily Turner, Jo said: 'We were told to evacuate, and we had to leave, although everyone's got what they need - wallets and keys. I just want to know what's going on.' Mandy added: 'I'm not feeling worried, but I would like to get in so I can close the windows properly.'
Delivery drivers stuck
Delivery driver Matt Hawkins said: 'We're trying to deliver meds to Boots, and we don't know how long we're going to have to wait.'
His colleague Steve Tucker added: 'I heard from my wife that there was a package reported in the precinct. I do understand, they've got to do the right thing. I think it will probably take a while.'
Comment Guidelines
National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.