Grenade alert shuts station

A METROLINK station was shut after a magnet fisher pulled a Second World War grenade out of a nearby canal.

The potentially-explosive device was pulled from the Bridgewater Canal, in Sale, yesterday morning.

The discovery led to Brooklands tram station being closed for more than three hours.

Police cordoned off the area around the station, including Marsland Road and the canal, and trams went through without stopping.

The Royal Logistics Corps (RLC) bomb disposal team were called and removed the device for disposal, saying it did not pose any danger.

A controlled explosion was later carried out as a precaution.

Dino Nicholas, co-owner of Us Four cafe at the station, said: “We heard it was a grenade found in the canal, to our knowledge nothing like this has been found here previously.

“It is a very busy station and there were hundreds of commuters.

“We have spoken to the police and we are far enough way but it has affected trade. We arrived at around twenty to eight and police were cordoning the area off.”

The alarm was raised at around 7.20am by the magnet fisher.

The pastime is a form of treasure hunting in water to find objects, but also to help remove debris. Cars were diverted and canal boaters were prevented from passing through the cordon, which was lifted at around 10.30am.

An RLC spokesman at the scene confirmed the grenade was not dangerous and was being taken away for disposal.

A police spokesman said: “Roads surrounding Brooklands tram station were sealed off by police following reports of a suspect war grenade being found.

“The suspect explosive was discovered by the canal on Marsland Road, close to the Metrolink station, at 7.20am on Thursday morning.

“There were a number of road closures and precautions in place while the assessment was made.”