Westcliff seafront cordon after bomb disposal team called

The Army's explosive ordnance device squad were blue lit to MOD land this morning after a number of suspected unexploded devices were discovered in the Ray off Westcliff.

This formed part of a three-day incident as the coastguard in Southend was tasked with reports of the explosive shells being found on Monday morning.

Some of the suspected ordnance (Image: HM Coastguard Southend)

Coastguard officers positioned themselves by Rossi's ice cream parlour in Western Esplanade, as other officers were sent out into the Ray to inspect the suspected ordnance and report back.

After reviewing photos and measurements sent by the coastguard, the bomb disposal team requested additional measurements which were taken on Tuesday.

They later confirmed they would need to come out in person and inspect the suspected ordnance on Wednesday morning.

The team was on the scene by 9am today and, upon X-raying, they were concerned by the types of ordnance some of which were potential fragmentation shells.

Another suspected unexploded device (Image: HM Coastguard Southend)

As detonation nearer the foreshore would've required closing the seafront, a brief safety cordon was put in place while the ordnance was made secure for transport, and the coastguard escorted the bomb squad under blue lights to Foulness Island for it to be dealt with safely.

A coastguard spokesman said: "We would like to thank the general public for their cooperation as the ordnance was safely removed, Rossi staff for coffees to keep the team going, Southend Council and our colleagues at the Army EOD for their attendance today.

"Because these items can be so dangerous, if you ever see something suspicious or out of the ordinary on the beach or in the sea, do not touch it, move it or take it home."