Police called to reports of 'grenade' in car boot

PA Media A close up of the front of a Merseyside Police vehicle with the force's badge and the words Merseyside Police displayed prominently on the bonnet in bold blue and black font. In the background there is blue tape which reads 'police line, do not cross'.PA Media
Multiple road closures are in place in Bootle

A possible grenade has been discovered in the boot of a car in Merseyside, police have said.

Merseyside Police confirmed they were in attendance on Strand Road in Bootle, having received a report about a potential device at approximately 13:10 GMT.

A cordon was in place and several homes and businesses had been evacuated as a precaution, a Merseyside Police spokesperson said.

"There are also multiple road closures in place, so please avoid the area while emergency services deal with the incident," the spokesperson added.

Eye On Southport A picture of Ainsdale Beach as the WW2 bomb is exploded underwater. Smoke from the detonation can be see above the water, and officers are standing to watch.Eye On Southport
A device discovered on a nearby road in Bootle last month was detonated at Ainsdale Beach in Southport on 22 October

The incident comes after the discovery of two unexploded bombs, also found in Bootle.

An unexploded World War Two bomb was discovered at a site on North Atlantic Avenue on Tuesday, 22 October, with another device discovered on the same street on Thursday, 24 October.

The first device found was taken to Ainsdale Beach in Southport, where it was detonated by the Army's Explosive Ordnance Disposal team (EOD).

Video footage of the controlled explosion, captured by the news site Eye On Southport, showed the EOD team destroying the device at the beach.

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