Asda evacuated its Leeds head office on Monday after West Yorkshire Police received reports of a suspicious package sent to Asda House on Great Wilson Street at about 11:15 GMT. Leeds news moved quickly from a workplace evacuation to a controlled explosion at the building.
The police response brought in an Army Explosive Ordnance Disposal team, which carried out the controlled explosion on the package. Emergency services stayed at the scene after the blast, while roads around the building were expected to remain closed through rush hour on Monday evening.
Great Wilson Street in Leeds
A spokesperson for Asda said the building had been evacuated safely. That left staff out of the building while the response continued on Great Wilson Street in Leeds, with the effect spreading beyond the office itself and into nearby routes used by drivers and pedestrians in Leeds city centre.
Roads affected included Victoria Road, Meadow Lane, Neville Street, Bridge End and Great Wilson Street. West Yorkshire Police told motorists to avoid parts of Leeds city centre for the coming hours because of the incident on Great Wilson Street.
West Yorkshire Police statement
A West Yorkshire Police spokesperson said nobody had been harmed as a result of the morning’s incident and there was no wider threat to the public. That allowed police to narrow the practical risk to the immediate scene, even as the cordon and traffic restrictions stayed in place.
A video from the scene showed a bomb disposal device being wheeled out of the back of an Army truck towards the premises. The package itself has not been described, and the public-facing response remained focused on clearing the area, keeping roads closed and letting emergency services finish their work.
Asda House evacuation
For people in Leeds city centre, the immediate instruction was simple: avoid the affected roads and expect delays through the evening commute. The evacuation at Asda House in Leeds ended safely, but the scene stayed active because police and the Army Explosive Ordnance Disposal team had not yet finished securing the area.
