UK town centre on lockdown after 'woman accidentally donates live grenade'

A town centre was placed in an emergency lockdown after a live Second World War grenade was handed to volunteers at a heritage centre.

A town centre in Darwen, Lincolnshire, was thrown into chaos following the alarming discovery which prompted an immediate lockdown, with police setting up cordons and bomb disposal units rushing to the scene.

According to LancsLive, a British Army spokesperson confirmed that the item in question was indeed a grenade, which was subsequently safely removed and destroyed.

Lincolnshire Police issued a statement urging the public to steer clear of the area: "We are currently at the scene of an ongoing incident at Market Hall, Darwen. Officers are currently at the scene and a cordon is in place."

The force appealed for calm, adding: "We are asking people to avoid the area for now and we will update you in due course."

Social media users took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to express their disbelief at the surreal situation.

One user posted: "Apparently Darwen town centre is in lockdown an unexploded grenade has innocently been handed into the Heritage Centre.

"The pin was still in had to get Police and bomb disposal to remove it. Police and bomb disposal vehicles all over the town centre.", reports the Mirror.