Northern Ireland homes evacuated after reports of car bomb explosion

Police in Northern Ireland on Sunday declared a security alert in the town of Dunmurry, on the outskirts of Belfast, after reports that a car bomb exploded near a police station. Homes in the vicinity have been evacuated and members of the public are advised to avoid the area, the Police Service of Northern Ireland said on Sunday. "It is distressing and disturbing to wake up to the news that a car bomb exploded outside Dunmurry police station last night," said Sorcha Eastwood, a member of the U.K. Parliament who represents the Langan Valley, southwest of Belfast. "A busy area, a car bomb left outside residential housing, small businesses and any number of people out and about on a Saturday night working or socialising,'' she said. "It is only through the grace of God that there are no casualties." Police have released no information about the motive for the attack. Last month, police said a "crude but viable" improvised bomb was used in an attempted attack on another PSNI station in Lurgan, about 20 miles (32 kilometers) southwest of Dunmurry. Two masked men stopped a delivery driver, placed the device in the trunk of his car and forced him at gunpoint to take the device to the police station, according to authorities. Police carried out a controlled explosion after about 100 homes were evacuated. …