Watch as bomb squad called to Hailsham road

Homes were evacuated and a 100m cordon put in place after the discovery of a ‘suspicious item’ in Dunbar Drive, said police.

The alarm was raised at 9.47am after the item was found at a property in the road.

An EOD (Explosive Ordnance Disposal) team arrived to examine the item at 12.30pm.

A spokesperson for the force said earlier, “A precautionary cordon [was] put in place as a matter of course and houses in the area evacuated until this has been carried out.”

A large stretch of Gleneagles Drive was closed as the incident unfolded.

The EOD team advised it was safe for the cordon to be lifted at 1.51pm.

Police have not given any further information about the nature of the suspicious item at this time.

Grovelands Community Primary School was not affected by the incident, police said.

A spokesperson for the school confirmed it remained open throughout but the access via Dunbar Drive was closed.

Parents were asked to collect their children from the Grovelands Road entrance instead. Should there be any updates, parents will be informed by email, the school said.

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