Contaminated mustard gas soil to go from Roughton Moor

The canisters are believed to date back to World War Two

The Ministry of Defence is preparing to remove contaminated soil from sites where a large quantity of mustard gas canisters were found.

Royal Navy and Army bomb disposal teams have cleared 150 canisters from Roughton Moor, near Woodhall Spa, and a lake in nearby Stixwould.

But a quantity of contaminated soil remains, officials said.

Local road closures will be in place from 20 to 24 November while the work is carried out.

Two people suffered minor burns after unearthing several canisters on 1 October.

This led to a major search and decontamination exercise, involving specialist military personnel and police.

The canisters were taken to the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory at Porton Down, Wiltshire.

The soil will also be disposed of at the laboratory.

Royal Navy and Army bomb disposal teams have been working with emergency services to make the sites safe

The canisters found at Roughton Moor are believed to be from an RAF station and military base which was on the site from 1942 until it closed in the late-1960s.

Mustard gas was used as a weapon during World War One and outlawed by the Geneva Protocol of 1925.

The people burnt when they unearthed canisters had been digging for vintage bottles in the woods.