A TOWN centre has been evacuated following a bomb scare.
Police are investigating a suspicious package left outside Middlesbrough Town Hall this afternoon.
Streets have been closed to vehicles and pedestrians along Albert Road from Corporation Road to Grange Road.
The council buildings around Centre Square have been evacuated but Teesside Magistrates Court and Teesside Crown courts remain open.
A spokeswoman for Cleveland Police said: Police were called to reports of a suspicious package next to the town hall in Middlesbrough at about 2.15pm.
Officers remain on the scene as a purely precautionary measure and road closures have been put in place on Albert Road from the junction with Corporation Road to Grange Road.
She added: "Police are working with local businesses in the surrounding area to ensure the safe evacuation of members of the public.
"We would like to ask members of the public to avoid the area if possible."
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