Armed police and bomb squad swoop as homes evacuated after moorland discovery

Homes were evacuated and the bomb squad deployed after a 'suspicious' item was found on moorland in Salford. Police cordoned off a footpath near Heathland Road and residents told to leave their homes next to Kersal Moor today.

Footage shows the bomb disposal robot being scrambled while armed police scoured the land for clues. Some residents were warned ahead of time that they may be evacuated once the bomb squad arrived.

One resident who lived on Heathland Road described the scene as 'madness' while another told the MEN how they had been asked to leave their home by police in the afternoon, speaking to the MEN they said: "I've been told to leave my house because I'm in the zone".

READ MORE: 'You wouldn’t even treat animals the way we have been treated': Family left stranded and laying on airport floors after ‘nightmare’ trip with easyJet

Another resident said: "They've asked us to leave our home but still haven't told us exactly what it is, they've been here since 7am."

GMP Salford tweeted that while a 'suspicious item had been found on Kersal Moor and a small number of properties were evacuated, there was no 'known risk to the wider public'

GMP Salford tweeted: "We’ve evacuated a small number of properties in the Kersal Moor area after a suspicious item was found during an isolated & contained search operation. EOD are at the scene as a precaution to make an assessment of the item. There is no known risk to the wider public."

Earlier today armed police were pictured scouring the area as part of a 'wider operation'. A spokesperson for Greater Manchester Police said that police were at the scene 'as part of a wider operation'

Speaking to the MEN a local noted that police had been seen in the area for days. They