Exeter brought to a standstill following discovery of two suspect packages

In a city that has seen an attempted terrorist bombing in recent times, the sight of the Royal Navy bomb disposal team complete with robotic devices and officers in full body blast protection suits brought Exeter to a stunned halt. A suitcase attached to the railings of St Sidwell's Church of England Primary School in York Road, and then another found not far away in King William Street.

A spokesperson for Devon and Cornwall police told us: "At about five to seven this morning we had a report of a suspicious package in York Road in Exeter and followed a little bit later by another report of another suspicious package not too far from the first in King William Street, we've put cordons in place our main priority of course is to keep the public safe."

Although it's now known both suitcases weren't a threat, cases left with wires and electronics inside sparked a full scale emergency.

"Our caretaker saw something attached to our school railings he looked into the bag and thought this could be something and rang the police. Well I think the first thing is to think about the childrens safety and getting them away from the school I don't think is something for a normal school day but our priority was getting them away from the school."

Police closed off Sidwell Street from Princesshay to the Odeon Cinema and also Longbrook Street and evacuated hundreds of homes and businesses.

The cordoned off area was closed for almost seven hours, leaving locals locked out of their homes.

After the autrocity in Tunisia, it's clear to see that the emergency services are on a heightened state of alert.