Homeless forced onto the streets after bomb scare at new boat shelter

A boat on the Vltava River in Prague - which has been refurbished to act as shelter for the city's homeless - had to be evacuated on Saturday night after it received an anonymous phone call saying there was a bomb on board. 120 people staying at the facility had to spend a large part of the night on the street while police conducted a search. No explosive devices were found. Police now believe the call was probably placed from a nearby phone booth by a disgruntled homeless man who had been refused accommodation on the boat because he was drunk. The forty-four-year-old cargo boat, which is called the Hermes, was refurbished by city authorities and opened as a homeless shelter with 250 beds at the start of this month.

Author: Coilin O'Connor