Avon and Somerset Police cordoned off part of Park Street, Bristol on Friday after a member of the public reported a suspicious item at about 08:25 BST. A bomb disposal team later carried out a controlled explosion, while workers at Pizzarova were moved out of the restaurant.
Park Street in Bristol
The cordon covered 50m and included Hill Street, St George's Road and Frogmore Street, closing off part of a busy city centre area. Josh Squires said, “We were doing our prep shift for a busy Friday,” after he and Henry Yeomans arrived at Pizzarova at 09:00 BST.
About half an hour into the shift, the street was shut down and they were evacuated. Squires said, “About half an hour into the shift they shut the street down and said we had to get out, so we evacuated.”
Henry Yeomans and Josh Squires
Yeomans said the scene changed quickly once police had sealed off the area. “We could see the thing on the street, a white bollard with something strapped to it,” he said, adding, “The military have just shown up and two of the bomb disposal team are here. Hopefully, we'll be open this evening for service.”
The suspicious item was treated seriously enough to bring in a bomb disposal response, but the report did not say what it actually was. A police spokesperson said the explosive ordnance disposal unit had been notified and would attend the area to conduct further enquiries.
For people working or travelling through that stretch of Park Street, the practical effect was immediate: access was blocked across the cordoned streets while the controlled explosion took place and the area was checked further.
The report leaves one basic question open: what was left on Park Street. Until that is answered, the only fixed point for anyone affected is that the cordon closed part of the street, forced an evacuation at Pizzarova, and brought a bomb disposal team to the scene.
