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UPDATED 15:04*
WIGHTLINK sailings from the Isle of Wight to Portsmouth have been disrupted this morning (Wednesday) after an unexploded ordnance was discovered at Portsmouth Harbour.


Wightlink suspended the Fastcat passenger service and the Fishbourne / Portsmouth car ferry early this morning citing security reasons. In an update at 6am the company said it did not know how long they would remain suspended.

Hampshire Police confirmed on Twitter that it had 'activated a pre-arranged plan' to deal with the ordnance.

"Please be aware unexploded ordnance has been located during an ongoing dredging operation to prepare for new Royal Navy aircraft carriers in Portsmouth Harbour.

"We are working with Ministry of Defence Police, the Royal Navy, Portsmouth City Council, and other organisations to activate a pre-arranged multi-agency plan.

"Our priority is to keep the public safe and minimise community disruption while the ordnance is detonated by the Royal Navy Explosive Ordnance Disposal.

"We’ll be in touch with local residents to let them know about any action they might need to take and keep you updated on here in the event of any road closures or affected public transport," the force said on Facebook.

In an update at 8.15am, Wightlink said the Fastcat had resumed sailing and the car ferry would be back in service shortly.

Hovertravel services were operating as normal.


The device was taken to a safe area and detonated.


.@RoyalNavy bomb disposal experts have safely detonated an unexploded bomb found in the entrance to #Portsmouth Harbour pic.twitter.com/dxu1SfjQmy

— Royal Navy (@RoyalNavy) February 22, 2017