Bristol city centre came to a standstill yesterday afternoon by a bomb scare in the Cabot Circus shopping centre.

A controlled explosion on a briefcase left outside one of the centres shops was carried out by the forces EOD (Explosives Ordnance Disposal) team at about 4.45pm.

Police had been called shortly before 2pm to reports of a suspicious package. A 100m cordon was put in place and the shopping centre and other buildings within the cordon area evacuated.

Temple Way and Bond Street were closed to traffic and pedestrians, as were Broad Weir, Lower Castle Street, Penn Street and part of The Horsefair.

The road closures led to traffic chaos in the run-up to the rush hour with Newfoundland Street badly congested.

The delays almost delayed the start of Bristol City FCs match at Ashton Gate last night, after club manager Derek McInnes revealed that the delays were affecting his stars trying to get to the ground.

Thankfully we managed to get the boys here because there was a bit of concern about four or five of them, he said.

We did think about the possibility of pushing the kick-off back but thankfully the support turned up in numbers and it was all worthwhile.

Police, police community support officers and Cabot Circus security staff manned cordons around the centre in the monsoon-like conditions as part of well-rehearsed plans.

There were fears that the operation could force the closure of the centre for the rest of the day. But following the controlled explosion, the centre and surrounding roads were reopened by about 5.15pm.

Superintendent Andy Pullan from Avon and Somerset police said: This was a false alarm with good intent. Concerns were raised at about 2pm. We worked with businesses in the area and our agency partners, following well-rehearsed plans to move people behind the cordon, advised by EOD. The safety of the public is always paramount in such situations.

We would like to thank the public and those working in the area who have been affected by the incident, for their support, patience and understanding.