BOMB disposal experts were called to a Redditch building site on Friday after anti-tank bombs from the Second World War were unearthed in an old Home Guard air raid shelter.

The glass bottle grenades containing phosphorus, petrol and rubber, were found in crates in a shelter under the former Quinton Hazel site, off Shawbank Road in Lakeside.

Contractors excavating the site, which was a BSA munitions factory during the war, called in emergency services after a thick cloud of smoke rose from the earth they were digging.

Nearby residents were told to stay indoors and keep their windows and doors shut.

Redditch fire brigade station officer Mark Preece said: "About 10 broken bottles were found and six or seven bottles intact in their original crates.

"It was pure fluke some of the bottles were undamaged when the shelter roof was caved in.

"Some of the contents had soaked into the wood of the crates and as soon as it was exposed to the air, the phosphorous reacted and started burning and giving off gas."

The area was quickly covered with sand to prevent any more exposure and bomb disposal experts called in to identify what the finds were.

Mr Preece said: "The air raid shelters were secure so nothing could have leaked from them.

"We created a well of sand and put the bottles in and used a digger to break them up. They ignited and we let them burn out."

Former BSA Home Guard member Jack Clements was based at the Lakeside factory in the war.

The 82 year old from Astwood Bank said: "I can actually remember the bottles being stored down there in case we were invaded by the Germans. I also remember the road blocks all round the district in case of invasion."

Historian Mike Johnson, of Cookhill, has spent the past few years researching the history of the town's Home Guard companies and the Redditch defence plan.

"To my knowledge, this is the first time any munitions have been dug up in Redditch. There may well be more too," he said.