WWII bomb forces five pharmacies in Sunderland to close
Five pharmacies were among hundreds of premises evacuated for at least
48 hours earlier this week after a 1,000lb World War II bomb was found
in the Hendon area of Sunderland.
The bomb — thought to have been dropped by a German bomber in 1940
— was unearthed by builders at about 5pm on Monday during work to
extend a medical centre. Sunderland police imposed an exclusion zone with
a radius of 400m, affecting 4,000 residents and many local businesses.
As The Journal went to press, the bomb had still not been made safe, and
bomb disposal experts were warning that the emergency might not be resolved
until Thursday morning or later.
Three of the pharmacies forced to close are owned by pharmacist Sailesh
Patel. One of them — trading as Medichem at 50 Suffolk Street —
is almost on top of the bomb site. The others are in nearby Mainsforth
Terrace West and Villette Street. Also affected were the pharmacies of
P. F. McCarthy in Saville Place and Leslie Storey at the Hendon Health
Centre in Meaburn Terrace.
A number of medical practices and health centres also had to be evacuated.
Recorded messages on a police telephone helpline advised local residents
with urgent health care needs to telephone Sunderland Teaching Primary
Care Trust, which was trying to make temporary arrangements for patients
with repeat prescriptions and those needing daily supplies of drugs such
as methadone.
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