Man finds three WW2 bombs while digging in garden

Tom Clarke, 39, was doing some landscaping in his garden when he discovered the bombs

Residents have returned home after being evacuated following the discovery of three unexploded World War Two bombs in a garden.

Police were called to Plassey Street in Penarth, Vale of Glamorgan, at about 13:30 BST on Tuesday after Tom Clarke made the discovery while digging up part of his back garden.

About 50 homes were evacuated as a precautionary measure while the devices were examined and made safe, South Wales Police said.

In an update on Tuesday evening, police confirmed three German World War Two incendiary bombs had since been "safely removed" and residents had been allowed home.

Three German World War Two incendiary bombs have been safely removed

Mr Clarke, 39, was digging in his back garden in order to put up a new wall when he found a long piece of old metal.

He said he discarded the first piece in the skip, thinking it was "an old washing line pole or something", but then found more ordnances, and researched it further.

When he could see that what he had dug up looked like a bomb, he immediately called the police.

"The adrenaline was pumping at that point, you're thinking what's going to happen here," he said.

He alerted his wife, who was working upstairs, but said she thought it was a "joke" until officers turned up.

"They were really helpful, and told me just to be careful if I was doing any more digging – not to push the spade in too hard just in case," he said.

As specialist officers removed the ordnances to take them away to be destroyed, Mr Clarke and others on the street were asked to evacuate their homes temporarily.

"It was pretty odd – I had to knock on next door and tell them 'you might want to pack up a few things, you might have to be gone for a few hours'," he added.

About 50 homes were evacuated and a cordon was put in place while officers examined the devices

In a statement, the police said: "We would like to thank the bomb disposal specialists for their assistance and the public for their patience and understanding while we dealt with this incident."

Alison Jones, owner of The Crepe Escape on the town's Glebe Street, said it was a "normal Tuesday" until police suddenly arrived and began cordoning off the area.

The cafe's forced closure came at a "really busy time, given it's the summer holidays" and as a result, Ms Jones said the business had "suffered financially", with takings down to half or even less than usual.