Wellington Place incident: People evacuated from Leeds office building and huge police cordon in place
and live on Freeview channel 276
There is a large police cordon around 7 Wellington Place, Whitehall Road, in the city centre.
Our reporter at the scene said a siren is blaring at intervals, as well as a recorded message announcing that a fire has been reporting in the building.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdBut West Yorkshire Police have confirmed the evacuation took place after a a “potentially suspicious package” was delivered to the office.
A spokesperson said: “Police have received a report of a potentially suspicious package which had been delivered to a building in Wellington Place, Leeds, at around 5.05pm today (March 7).
“The building has been evacuated as a precaution for public safety.
“We are currently assessing this incident and ask for patience while we work to bring this to a safe conclusion.”
Scroll down for live updates on this breaking incident.
Evacuation at office building in Leeds after suspicious package found
Road now reopened
Live updates from AA show that traffic is now flowing freely on Whitehall Road.
The road was partially closed this afternoon after a “potentially suspicious package” was delivered to an office on Wellington Place.
Road now reopened
Live updates from AA show that traffic is now flowing freely on Whitehall Road.
The road was partially closed this afternoon after a “potentially suspicious package” was delivered to an office on Wellington Place.
Traffic building across Leeds city centre due to road closure
There is now heavy traffic across Leeds city centre due to the closure on Whitehall Road.
Road now closed in both directions
Police have now closed Whitehall Road in both directions between the junctions of Globe Road and Northern Street.
This is due to a suspicious package that was found in an office building on Wellington Place.
Two police vans and three cars are stationed along the stretch of Whitehall Road that has been closed off, with officers redirecting pedestrians as they approach.
People evacuated after ‘potentially suspicious package’ delivered to building
West Yorkshire Police have confirmed that people were evacuated from the building after a “potentially suspicious package” was delivered to the office.
A spokesperson said: “Police have received a report of a potentially suspicious package which had been delivered to a building in Wellington Place, Leeds, at around 5.05pm today (March 7).
“The building has been evacuated as a precaution for public safety.
“We are currently assessing this incident and ask for patience while we work to bring this to a safe conclusion.”
Suspicious package delivered to Leeds city centre office sparks mass evacuation
A "potentially suspicious package" delivered to a Leeds city centre office has sparked the mass evacuation of the building.
Pictures from the scene
Police have cordoned off a large section around the office building, including gardens in Wellington Place.
A section of the pavement in front of the building, on Whitehall Road, is closed to pedestrians - but traffic is still running in both directions.
These pictures show the extent of the cordon:
Evacuation at Leeds office building due to reports of a fire
People have been evacuated from an office building in Leeds due to an emergency incident.
There is a large police cordon around 7 Wellington Place, Whitehall Road, in the city centre.
Our reporter at the scene said a siren is blaring at intervals, as well as a recorded message announcing that a fire has been reported in the building.
We have contacted West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue and West Yorkshire Police for more information.
Comment Guidelines
National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.