Trio of suspect devices in Ballynahinch are declared hoaxes after army sends in T7 bomb disposal robot

A security alert in Ballynahinch which has been going on since morning has now ended.
By Adam Kula
Published 19th Jan 2024, 21:10 GMT
Updated 19th Jan 2024, 21:10 GMT
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Officers received a report of a suspicious object in the garden of a house at Windmill Avenue, a residential street off Loughside Drive in the south-east of the town, shortly before 10am.

Images from the scene show military lorries deploying a T7 robot to investigate.

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The 5mph robots were bought by the Army in 2017 from the Harris Corporation, a Florida-based business, under a scheme called Project Starter.

Bomb disposal officers at the scene of a suspicious object in the Windmill Avenue area of BallynahinchBomb disposal officers at the scene of a suspicious object in the Windmill Avenue area of Ballynahinch
Bomb disposal officers at the scene of a suspicious object in the Windmill Avenue area of Ballynahinch

The PSNI said: “An operation was put in place to enable the object to be examined but while the operation was ongoing, reports of two further objects at nearby Loughside Drive were received.

"A number of roads were closed and homes evacuated while all three objects were examined.

“The objects have now been declared hoaxes and have been taken away for further forensic examination. Roads have re-opened and residents allowed back to their homes.”

The PSNI thanked the local community for their “patience and understanding during the course of this protracted security operation”.