A bus was stopped and a man was detained due to reports of a firearm - which turned out to be a water pistol.

At around 9.10pm on Thursday, August 22 police received a report of a man in possession of what appeared to be a firearm at a bus stop in Dorchester Road in Weymouth.

It was further reported that the man then boarded a bus towards Dorchester.

Dorset Police says they take reports of firearms incidents very seriously and deployed specialist officers, who stopped the bus outside Vivo Lounge in Weymouth Avenue at around 9.40pm.

The man was detained, and it was found that the alleged firearm was a water pistol.

The water pistol was described as being 'silver' and 'metallic', with the informant strongly believing it to be a firearm - which is what dictated this level of response from police.

A spokesperson for Dorchester Police said: "A man was detained in relation to the report and following enquiries, it was ascertained that the reported firearm was a water pistol. The water pistol was recovered, and the man was given strong words of advice about the impact his actions could have had on both the local community and police resourcing.

"No further action was required.

"We would like to thank the members of the public on the bus who were affected by this incident. We would also like to reassure members of the local community that we will continue to respond swiftly and robustly to reports such as this as the safety of the public is our number one concern."