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Being treated as a MAJOR incident

A man and woman are in a critical condition after being exposed to an unknown substance, which counter terrorism officers are investigating.

The pair, in their 40s, were found unconscious in what was thought to be in a drugs-related incident in Amesbury, Wiltshire, on Saturday.

It is understood tests are being carried out on the substance at a government chemical weapons laboratory.

Amesbury is about 10 miles from the Salisbury Russian spy poisoning site.

Former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia were poisoned with Novichok, a suspected military nerve agent, in March.

The Met said counter terrorism officers are now working with Wiltshire Police "given the recent events in Salisbury"

Wiltshire Police said it is "open-minded" about the cause after a couple were found at a house in Muggleton Road, Amesbury.

While it was not clear whether a crime had been committed, the force said, a number of places in Amesbury and Salisbury known to have been frequented by the couple had been cordoned off.

It said the public can expect to see an increased police presence in and around Amesbury and Salisbury.

"It was initially believed that the two patients fell ill after using possibly heroin or crack cocaine from a contaminated batch of drugs," Wiltshire Police said.

"They are both currently receiving treatment for suspected exposure to an unknown substance at Salisbury District Hospital," it added.

The couple are believed to have attended a family fun day at Amesbury Baptist Church on Saturday afternoon before they were found unconscious in the property.

Roy Collins, church secretary, said "nobody else has suffered any ill-effects" from attending the community event and "there was nothing going on that was nefarious".

"There have been no reports of any other incidents," he said.

"We are all quite puzzled and shocked - naturally the connection with Salisbury and recent events there mean there is a heightened public interest."

Boots has closed its Amesbury store as "a precautionary measure" to allow police to carry out an investigation, a spokesperson confirmed.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-englan...shire-44707052

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