AROUND a hundred police - some carrying firearms - surrounded Bridgwater train station on Tuesday, as officers safeguarded against environmental campaigners targeting nuclear waste transports.

Officers began a pre-dawn vigil at the station and stayed throughout the whole day, stopping and searching rail passengers and providing a safety blanket around the dangerous waste.

The move came just one day after environmental lobbyists Greenpeace placed a full-page advert in the national press warning of the dangers of transporting nuclear waste through residential areas with little security.

The group has previously pinpointed trains carrying waste from Hinkley Point through Bridgwater as potential targets for terrorists, and warned that an attack could lead to huge health hazards for people in a 50km radius.

The ad even painted a scarcely-concealed picture of Bridgwater - referring to "one residential area, about 20 metres from a primary school" where trains carrying "highly radioactive nuclear waste" are loaded.

Greenpeace anti-nuclear spokesman Emma Gibson told the Mercury: "Bridgwater WAS the place we were referring to, although we had no protest planned.

"These hazardous loads are passing close to homes, workplaces and schools. An accident, or a terrorist attack, could expose thousands of people in the surrounding area to cancer-causing radiation. Whole areas might have to be evacuated."

The group's ad - coupled with cryptic talk of anti-nuclear protests in the South West on Greenpeace's website, and the painful poignancy of Chernobyl's 20th anniversary that day - prompted the police to move in, though officers stressed the action was a precaution, rather than in anticipation of a direct threat.

Superintendent Colin Price of the British Transport Police said: "We read what's in the paper, we look at what's on internet sites.

"The Guardian advert talks about an area that clearly fits the Bridgwater profile. To my mind, that's irresponsible. When we see that sort of advert, then we take action.

"I am not talking about something happening to the flask, I am talking about protests. They (Greenpeace) have a lot of history in terms of protests. So, what we are talking about here, is contingency planning.

"It's not about if Greenpeace say something then we jump - it's about being responsible.

"The public should be reassured - these flasks are not dangerous. The reality is that they are incredibly robust. Trust me, if I had any doubts about that, I would not be sending my men near them."