A CONTROLLED explosion was carried out after a shell was washed up on a West Dorset beach during the storms.

Police were alerted to something suspicious that had washed up on the shoreline on the beach at Charmouth shortly after 3pm today.

A cordon was put in place as bomb disposal experts headed to the scene to investigate.

A spokesman for Dorset Police said that on arrival the bomb squad ascertained that the item was a phosphorous marker shell and carried out a controlled detonation of the device.

She added that bomb squad left the scene at around 6.30pm.