BONES were discovered by workmen as they were digging up a Weymouth town centre street.

The remains, which police do not believe to be suspicious, are now being sent away for tests.

The discovery was made as work was carried out in Church Passage between St Mary Street and Maiden Street on Friday afternoon.

Police cordoned off the area near St Mary's Church with an officer posted at either end while they waited for the bones to be recovered.

A number of police cars were initially called to the incident as police feared a suspicious death.

A spokesman for Dorset Police said: “We were called at 1.50pm to reports of some bones that had been discovered by some workmen who had been digging up the pavement.”

However, the discovery is not being treated as suspicious.

The spokesman said: “The bones have been sent for analysis but at this stage we are not treating it as suspicious.”

The discovery was made by workmen from Scottish and Southern Energy who were working in the alley adjacent to St Mary’s Church.

A spokesman for Southern Electrical Power Distribution said: “We can confirm that we discovered bones when working in the area. We have referred the matter to the police.”

Onlookers also reported seeing two police officers in black suits at the scene as the bones were being removed.

Cllr Francis Drake, who also owns Antonio’s Café in the town centre, said it was the first time he had heard of anything like this in the area.

He said: “It’s the first time that I’ve heard that they’ve found bones.

"Of course it’s now down to the police to identify them.”

St Mary’s Church is a Georgian church which dates back as far as the 18th century.

It is not known at this time whether the bones are connected to the church.

However, shopkeepers around the site spoke of their surprise at the discovery.

One worker at a nearby shop , who did not wish to be named said: “I think it’s probably some bones from the church or something like that.

“I’ve never heard of something like this before here. It’s not something that happens every day. I suppose it is a bit of excitement for a Friday afternoon.”

By around 4pm, three of the police cars had left the scene with just one car and two officers deployed to keep the scene secure.

Passers-by stopped throughout the afternoon to try and catch a glimpse of what was happening.

The hole where the bones were found appeared to be near to the entrance to The Snug bar.