Fears of another Novichok poisoning have been allayed after a incident in Durrington.
Significant numbers of emergency services raced to reports of a man falling ill after coming into contact with an unknown substance on Friday afternoon (28 March).
Around ten police officers and bomb disposal experts were deployed to the scene in Charles Road as medics treated a man aged in his 40s.
The major 999 response were reminiscent of the Salisbury Poisonings, bringing back painful memories for many locals.
Wiltshire and Bath Air Ambulance, local ambulance crews and three specialist Hazardous Area Response Team units from Bristol attended the scene.
Around ten fire service appliances, including crews from Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Service, were in also attendance.
Many of the emergency services were parked at a ‘rendezvous point’ nearby – at Durrington C of E VC Junior School.
In a statement this morning (Saturday), Wiltshire Police confirmed that testing has revealed no trace of a nerve agent or other chemical – with cordons lifted in the early hours.
The patient did not require hospital treatment after being treated at the scene.
Chief Inspector Graham McLaughlin said: “We appreciate the concern this incident has had in the community given the recent history and please be assured that the report was taken extremely seriously.
“Testing has been found to be negative and as a result the response and cordon has been lifted.
“I would like to thank specialist resources which came to assist from out of county for their time.
“I would also like to thank our partners in the Fire and Ambulance services for their support, and the public and local residents in Durrington for their patience while this incident was dealt with.”
