THREE Second World War shells have been blown up by bomb disposal experts after they were discovered at a Rochester Riverside redevelopment site.

The shells were found on Tuesday and were spotted when they reached a safety screen at the site after being dredged up in material being pumped ashore from the Thames Estuary.

The Ministry of Defence bomb disposal experts were called immediately and three controlled explosions were carried out to make the ordnance safe.

The new finds come less than a week after other shells were found at the site. The devices found on Tuesday morning were the first live ones found.

It is thought the army experts have been called to the site four times since work started.

A spokesman for SEEDA, the Government funded agency responsible for the development and regeneration of the South East of England, said: “We expect on a contract the scale of Rochester Riverside that a number of ordnance might be detected.

“This can be a common occurrence in the dredging operation and the discovery of these three shells in the safety screen proves the site’s safety measures are working properly.”

The site will eventually have 2,000 new homes, offices, shops, hotels and a school.