Builders' discovery of 'suspected World War Two explosive' at Scarborough Hospital leads to large police cordon

North Yorkshire Police said it was called at 12.50pm on Tuesday August 2 by builders to reports of a "suspected World War Two shell" found at Scarborough Hospital.

A 50-metre cordon was put in place around the device, which builders uncovered as they excavated land as part of works to create a new £47m emergency care centre.

As a precaution, the Army Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) team were called to inspect the device and deemed "the item was found not to be viable".

An EOD spokesperson told The Scarborough News that "at no time was there any danger to the public".

The suspected shell, believed to date from World War Two, was safely removed by army bomb disposal officers.

North Yorkshire Police said the suspected shell did not cause any disruption to the hospital or nearby roads.

A Ministry of Defence spokesperson said that team 11 EOD attended the incident and found what they call "non-ordnance; not an actual explosive".

An Army Explosive Ordnance Disposal Team spokesperson said: "Officers are regularly called out to incidents where suspected ordnance has been uncovered which, if live, we make safe.

"We always advise the public that if they inadvertently disturb what they believe to be live ordnance, they should contact their local police force as a matter of urgency."