Baked potato sparks fire fear at Northampton shopping centre

A baked potato, wrapped in tin foil and placed in the microwave, was the cause of a Northampton shopping centre being evacuated today.
By Carly Roberts
Published 4th Mar 2019, 13:27 BST
Updated 4th Mar 2019, 15:10 BST
Weston Favell Shopping Centre was evacuated this afternoon after a baked potato was placed into a microwave coveed in tinfoil.Weston Favell Shopping Centre was evacuated this afternoon after a baked potato was placed into a microwave coveed in tinfoil.
Weston Favell Shopping Centre was evacuated this afternoon after a baked potato was placed into a microwave coveed in tinfoil.

Weston Favell Shopping Centre was evacuated at about 1.30pm after customers and staff heard a message over the Tannoy system warning them there had been an 'incident'.

A spokeswoman for Weston Favell Shopping Centre confirmed that, in fact, someone had put a jacket potato in a microwave while wrapped in tin foil.

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The centre was subsequently evacuated as a precaution after the fire alarm was set off.

The alarm was believed to have been triggered in the budget store Savers.

A spokeswoman for Northamptonshire Police said: "Fire service are aware of it and understand it to be a false alarm."

One witness said: "I was having a coffee in Costa when all of a sudden the alarms started ringing and they kicked us all out."

The shopping centre is now welcoming people back into the building.