Shoppers were evacuated from Fishergate shopping centre in Preston on Wednesday morning after a suspicious device was discovered in a bin. The device, described by police as a “small incendiary”, was found by a member of the public in the toilets at about 9.10am.
Chief Superintendent James Lee, Lancashire police’s south division commander for Preston, said the device could have caused damage or injury had it fully detonated. Bomb disposal officers were called to recover the device, and the centre remains closed while a search for any other devices is conducted.
Lee told BBC Radio Lancashire that he believed the device had been planted deliberately. “There’s no other issues or intelligence to suggest anything else will happen in Preston, it’s just purely Fishergate centre, and we need to make sure it is safe and secure for people to go back into,” he said.
Some roads in the area have been closed, and diversions are in place. A Lancashire police spokesman said: “The safety of the public is our top priority and so the Fishergate centre has been evacuated as a precaution and is currently closed. The rest of Preston town centre remains open for business.”
One shopper, Adam Donnellan, tweeted: “Just been evacuated out of Preston fishergate shopping centre anyone heard anything? People running around like nut jobs.”
