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Security alert at castle and country park ends

Jessica Lawrence
BBC News NI
Reporting fromNorth Belfast
Pacemaker Two yellow, blue and white police cars outside the entrance to Cave Hill Country Park, with police tape across the road. Gates leading to a wooded hill are in the background and a red-brick detached house is to the right hand side of the picture.Pacemaker
Entrances to Cave Hill Country Park and Belfast Castle on the Antrim Road closed

A security alert in north Belfast has ended after "a number of viable pipe bomb type devices" were discovered.

Entrances to Cave Hill Country Park and Belfast Castle on the Antrim Road were closed after police received a report about a suspicious object on Tuesday evening.

The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) said: "The devices have been made safe and have since been removed from the scene and taken away for further forensic examination."

A quantity of ammunition was also found.

Residents said they have heard a series of controlled explosions coming from Cave Hill, starting at about 08:00 BST.

One resident, who lives in Downview Park West near the country park, said police were patrolling the gates from about 21:20 BST on Tuesday night.

The man said a cordon was set up at the nearby park entrance from early on Wednesday morning as he went to walk his dogs.

Nearby some tourists were disappointed to be unable to visit the castle.

Doug Hayward, from Fort Worth, Texas, had travelled to Belfast Castle with his wife on Wednesday morning after their flight to Edinburgh was cancelled.

Doug Hayward stands in front of a large hedge and two cherry blossom trees, which are blurred in the background. Mr Hayward has grey hair, and is wearing a grey aran jumper with a red and blue flannel shirt underneath. He is smiling at the camera.
Doug Hayward tried to visit Belfast Castle with his wife but was stopped at the entrance

"We got stuck at the airport this morning so we came back to Belfast for the day to look around," he told BBC News NI.

"We'd thought we would come to the castle but it's closed so I guess we'll go back to the city centre."