Journalists were evacuated from a regional daily’s office yesterday after a suspicious package was found.

Staff had to leave the Leicester Mercury’s New Walk headquarters following the discovery of the package on Wellington Street, outside the four-storey building.

However, they were allowed to return after the package was revealed to be a box contained an empty helium canister.

At one stage, police had cordoned off the office as well as several nearby streets.

The scene at the Mercury’s New Walk office this morning

The alarm had been raised at around 8.50am but staff were told to return to the building after about an hour outside.

A live blog about the incident on the Mercury’s website states: “Leicestershire Police have confirmed the contents of the package found in Wellington Street.

“The box contained an empty helium canister. It’s believed the box had been there for a few days.”