MolliG
04-21-2004, 12:53 PM
My hometown...
BBC News (news.bbc.co.uk)
Commuter chaos as station cleared
Commuters are being warned of major disruption after a large part of Reading Town centre was evacuated and cordoned off.
Army bomb disposal experts were called in after a suspect package was found in a toilet cubicle at Reading station.
It is understood the unattended briefcase was found in a routine check ahead of a visit by Prince Edward.
There is also considerable disruption in the town centre as buses and taxis are turned away from the area.
Thames Valley Police have set up a large cordon around the station and evacuated several buildings.
Network Rail says the closure is causing major delays from Paddington, as trains between London and the West queue to use the one line through the station which is open.
A First Great Western spokesman said they were picking up passengers for some long-distance services from Reading West.
"Obviously it's very difficult when we're not sure exactly how long the closure might last for us to determine exactly what the best course of action is.
"Until we know how things will develop further through the evening, it's difficult, so it's a wait and see approach at the moment."
South West Trains say they are trying to arrange buses for passengers wishing to travel beyond Wokingham.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/berkshire/3647093.stm
www.reading-guide.co.uk
BREAKING NEWS: DRAMA AS PACKAGE IS FOUND AT STATION
21/04/2004 POLICE have spent this afternoon (Wednesday) at the scene of an incident at Reading Railway Station, and have cordoned off an area of 100 metres all around the area while a suspect package is examined.
Thames Valley Police were alerted at 2.45pm today by British Transport Police. Officers reported the discovery of a suspect package in the male toilets on the ground floor of the station.
As a precautionary measure, a 100m cordon was immediately established around the station in order to enable the emergency services to determine the exact situation.
Bomb disposal experts were then called in to determine the nature of the package while police evacuated people from buildings within the cordoned area.
A torrential rain downpour at the same time hindered efforts and there was severe traffic disruption. There was also expected to be no reopening of the station in time for this evening's commuter rush-hour and police asked members of the public to be patient and co-operative and to continue listening to local news and radio stations for updates.
A police spokesman said: "Public safety will be the number one priority for the duration of this incident. People are urged to avoid the area at this time until we know the exact nature of what has happened."
NOTE: In the mid-1990's an IRA bomb was found by an alert British Rail employee and dismantled in the toilets on Platform 5 - and another IRA device exploded during the night along the track from Reading Station causing damaging to signalling and trackside equipment.
http://www.reading-guide.co.uk/cgi-bin/bnews.cgi?2658
Thought you lot might be interested. :)
Doubt it's AQ or the like, probably some ****head of a kid or something, you never know though...
BBC News (news.bbc.co.uk)
Commuter chaos as station cleared
Commuters are being warned of major disruption after a large part of Reading Town centre was evacuated and cordoned off.
Army bomb disposal experts were called in after a suspect package was found in a toilet cubicle at Reading station.
It is understood the unattended briefcase was found in a routine check ahead of a visit by Prince Edward.
There is also considerable disruption in the town centre as buses and taxis are turned away from the area.
Thames Valley Police have set up a large cordon around the station and evacuated several buildings.
Network Rail says the closure is causing major delays from Paddington, as trains between London and the West queue to use the one line through the station which is open.
A First Great Western spokesman said they were picking up passengers for some long-distance services from Reading West.
"Obviously it's very difficult when we're not sure exactly how long the closure might last for us to determine exactly what the best course of action is.
"Until we know how things will develop further through the evening, it's difficult, so it's a wait and see approach at the moment."
South West Trains say they are trying to arrange buses for passengers wishing to travel beyond Wokingham.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/berkshire/3647093.stm
www.reading-guide.co.uk
BREAKING NEWS: DRAMA AS PACKAGE IS FOUND AT STATION
21/04/2004 POLICE have spent this afternoon (Wednesday) at the scene of an incident at Reading Railway Station, and have cordoned off an area of 100 metres all around the area while a suspect package is examined.
Thames Valley Police were alerted at 2.45pm today by British Transport Police. Officers reported the discovery of a suspect package in the male toilets on the ground floor of the station.
As a precautionary measure, a 100m cordon was immediately established around the station in order to enable the emergency services to determine the exact situation.
Bomb disposal experts were then called in to determine the nature of the package while police evacuated people from buildings within the cordoned area.
A torrential rain downpour at the same time hindered efforts and there was severe traffic disruption. There was also expected to be no reopening of the station in time for this evening's commuter rush-hour and police asked members of the public to be patient and co-operative and to continue listening to local news and radio stations for updates.
A police spokesman said: "Public safety will be the number one priority for the duration of this incident. People are urged to avoid the area at this time until we know the exact nature of what has happened."
NOTE: In the mid-1990's an IRA bomb was found by an alert British Rail employee and dismantled in the toilets on Platform 5 - and another IRA device exploded during the night along the track from Reading Station causing damaging to signalling and trackside equipment.
http://www.reading-guide.co.uk/cgi-bin/bnews.cgi?2658
Thought you lot might be interested. :)
Doubt it's AQ or the like, probably some ****head of a kid or something, you never know though...