A MECHANIC today told how he felt sick after thinking he had discovered a home-made bomb in the boot of a car.
Part of Poulton was brought to a standstill yesterday as hundreds of people were evacuated from their workplaces after the device was discovered by Stephen Johnson while he was repairing a Mercedes in his workshop.
It took experts almost two hours to confirm the package was merely a prop built for a fancy dress party and to sound the all clear.
Police were called to Aldon Coachworks at Aldon Way on Poulton Industrial Estate just before 11am and cordoned the site off while bomb disposal experts were called in.
Nearby residents were also advised to evacuate their homes, trains between Preston and Poulton were halted and Garstang Road East was closed between Moorland Road and Bracewell Avenue.
Staff from the coachworks, a body repair garage, reported the wired device contained liquid and nuts and bolts and looked chillingly real.
The car had been in Aldon’s care for two weeks and had been driven and worked on by a number of their staff.
Stephen Johnson, 56, was carrying out body work on the vehicle when he opened the boot to discover items wired together, looking like a bomb.
The mechanic said: “I’ve never seen anything like it before, I felt a bit queasy in the stomach.
“It was a suspicious package, it looked like a bomb.
“It was wired together, there was a bottle with liquid in it and nuts and bolts stuck in the side of the bottle.
“I can’t understand why anyone would have that in the boot of their car.”
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