The operation to make the 'small device' safe will continue on Thursday
Olivia Beeson
00:19, 15 Jan 2026
Police have issued an update following evacuation for a 'bomb' found in a building site as the device is currently unable to be made safe. The suspected bomb was found near plympton>Plymouth city centre just before 12pm on Wednesday, January 14 and since a cordon has been in place with homes evacuated.
Royal bomb disposal experts and the police have confirmed that the device is not able to be made safe on Wednesday evening due to a lack of daylight and the need for additional equipment. Hence, the operation to do so has been paused and will resume on Thursday, January 15.
Properties were evacuated earlier in the evening along Millbay Road and the force have confirmed that as work has temporarily halted residents can return to their homes. However, when work continues in the morning they will need to leave again.
An evacuation assembly point was set up at Plymouth Cathedral and this closed at 11.30pm. Further properties are likely to be evacuated tomorrow but the location of these is yet to be confirmed.
Plymouth government are yet to establish what time people will be made to leave their homes in the morning but have said it should only be for a short period. A new evacuation assembly point will be set up at Christ the King Church Hall on Armada Way.
Millbay Academy announced earlier that the school will be closed on Thursday. Parents have been contacted. Moxy Hotel will also remain closed until the operation to make the device safe has concluded.
Council building, Ballard House, will also be closed for the day. Further updates on the work will be provided on Thursday morning.
It has been declared a major incident by the city council who are working alongside the Royal Navy and Police to make the device safe. A 100m cordon was put in place after the suspected bomb was found at the building site on Martin Street which was expanded to 400m ‘line of sight’ cordon, causing residents to leave their properties.
Vehicles parked within the cordon area, including those in the Brunel Car Park, could not be moved until it is lifted. An earlier statement from Devon and Cornwall police said: "We were called at 11.40am on Wednesday 14 January following a report of a suspected ordnance being found at a building site in Martin Street, Plymouth.
"A 100 metre cordon and associated road closures are currently in place. People are asked to avoid the area while attempts are made to identify the ordnance and make it safe.
"The incident is ongoing."