A huge evacuation alert was sparked when a grenade was found during a house clearance, the M.E.N. can reveal.
Dozens of residents were told to leave their homes and nearby shops were closed as police, bomb disposal experts, firefighters and paramedics were called to assess the scene in New Moston, north Manchester, on Thursday. Police later confirmed the grenade - which they described as 'viable' - was discovered in a garden on Norville Avenue, a small cul-de-sac.
Workers clearing the house after the owner sadly passed away found the device and raised the alarm. The ordnance was later confirmed to be a 'training device' which didn't contain explosives or a detonator. They are used for instruction in military circles and typically produce a flash and a bang to replicate a real-life explosion in training scenarios.
