Earthquake epicentre 53.42° North / 0.35° West
Spridlington Road, Faldingworth 53.34° North / 0.42° West
Co-incidence?

In the early l950s its comparatively isolated position in the Lincolnshire countryside saw the airfield selected for development as one of the major stores for nuclear weapons. Underground bunkers were built in western part of the former flying field and surrounded by high fences, with guard towers to afford tight security.

Royal Ordnance still retains part of Faldingworth, security being maintained.

 http://www.raf.mod.uk/bombercommand/s5.html


====


Recently the Licolnshire Echo reported:

28 January 2008


Residents living near a former RAF base are reporting a resurgence in ground-shaking explosions.

The Echo previously reported how people living in Spridlington, Faldingworth and Newtoft, north of Lincoln, had complained about the eruptions causing structural damage to their properties.

Michael Lebreton (51), from Newtoft, said the bangs started again last week - sometimes happening at 40-minute intervals.

he said:"There were extreme electricity surges which blew my computer. The whole house vibrates."

Mr Lebreton, the night duty manager at the Holiday Inn, in Lincoln, said that the explosions were particularly severe at the moment.

"I was trying to sleep after I'd been on nights but I was nearly getting rocked out of bed," he said. "It was like being under an artillery barrage."

West Lindsey District Council spokesman Geoff O'Neill said that officers had visited the site to investigate complaints of noise nuisance. He said: "Attempts have been made to take noise readings but it was too windy for the results to be reliable ."

Lu Lukama (26), a chimney sweep who also runs Rayburn and Aga repair and restoration company Rayburn Renaissance in the village, said it was like living in a war zone.

 http://www.thisislincolnshire.co.uk/displayNode.jsp?nodeId=156153&command=displayContent&sourceNode=156136&contentPK=19685397&moduleName=InternalSearch&formname=sidebarsearch

09 February 2008

MP Edward Leigh [Con: Gainsborough] has said a company responsible for explosions which have plagued Lincolnshire villages has "treated people badly".

People living in neighbouring villages including Newtoft, Spridlington and Faldingworth say the explosions are so violent, they have caused deep cracks in masonry and knocked plaster off the ceilings of their homes.

During a public meeting, he said West Lindsey District Council should now take the lead and put a stop to the nuisance by issuing a noise abatement notice.

The exact nature of the work is not clear but Mr Leigh said he had been told it is vital to national security.

 http://www.thisislincolnshire.co.uk/displayNode.jsp?nodeId=156153&command=displayContent&sourceNode=156136&contentPK=19822220&moduleName=InternalSearch&formname=sidebarsearch

- 09 February 2008

The Echo first reported on the explosions at Faldingworth in June 2005 - and again when they resumed in September 2006.

Dom Pavia, vice-chairman of Toft Newton Parish Council, which organised yesterday's meeting, said people were deeply concerned.

"We don't know what damage is being done but the explosions are loud enough to rattle windows and shake doors," he said.

[Photo of damage to prperties in print edition]

 http://www.thisislincolnshire.co.uk/displayNode.jsp?nodeId=156153&command=displayContent&sourceNode=156136&contentPK=19822576&moduleName=InternalSearch&formname=sidebarsearch

- 14 February 2008

West Lindsey District Council chief executive Duncan Sharkey has said the authority had to keep the business happy while considering the wishes of residents.

In a statement, he said the aim was to strike a balance with the site operator Skydock while keeping disruption to residents at a minimum.

Controlled explosions and ammunition testing are permitted on the site under licence by the Health and Safety Executive.

Michael Lebreton (51), from Newtoft, said that on Tuesday explosions were going off at 20 and 40-minute intervals.

"The explosions are getting very bad - they're shaking the house," he said.

 http://www.thisislincolnshire.co.uk/displayNode.jsp?nodeId=156153&command=displayContent&sourceNode=156136&contentPK=19870663&moduleName=InternalSearch&formname=sidebarsearch

18 February 2008

Pictures, taken last summer, show tins meant to prevent bullets blasting through the inside of a transport aircraft in the event of a fire.

The images were released to the Echo by the photographer, who has asked not to be identified.

While they were being taken a separate test involving several loud explosions was taking place in a field next door, he claims.

He worked for a Lincolnshire company which used the site. And he says he witnessed some of the facilities used by companies licensed to store and test munitions and to dispose of illegal fireworks imported from abroad.

He said.

"On this particular day, while we were doing our test by setting fire to some ammo tins with live ammunition inside, there were about three or four explosions coming from another test site.

"You could physically feel the ground shaking. My boss said that they were not digging a hole and burying it. They were doing it above ground."

While on the site, he says, he drove past an indoor tunnel with a huge screen to contain explosions.

"You can basically detonate an explosion on one side and watch it from the other side of the screen," he said.

And he witnessed the extreme security surrounding the facility.

The site was originally built as a high-security nuclear bomb store for RAF Scampton.

Residents living in nearby villages have complained over the noise and vibrations coming from the site but efforts to find out what goes on there have so far been fruitless.

The Echo's source......moved to quash rumours that bombs were being manufactured, tested or stored there.

Residents, including Sheila Blenkinsop (74) from Newton-by-Toft, near Faldingworth, say that cracks have appeared in their homes following some explosions.

She said: "We've been here 19 years but it is only over the last two years that there have been explosions."

David Humpage (61), from Toft-next-Newton, said: "I'm trying to find out who exactly is licensed for what up there. The whole place is so shrouded in secrecy - it needs a light shining on it."

 http://www.thisislincolnshire.co.uk/displayNode.jsp?nodeId=156153&command=displayContent&sourceNode=156136&contentPK=19903467&moduleName=InternalSearch&formname=sidebarsearch


Lincolnshire Echo editor Jon Grubb 01522 820000
News Desk 01522 804300
Subscriptions:
If you want to have your Echo delivered.
Tel: 01522 820000

original UK report:
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/02/392395.html