Wellington schools were locked down, streets closed after suspicious packages found

Cordons have been lifted in central Wellington after the bomb squad found there was no risk to safety from suspicious packages left outside buildings, nearby the US and Israeli embassies.

Several schools in the area had also gone into lockdown on Monday afternoon as a precautionary measure.

Police said the packages were found just before 2pm in Brandon Street in Wellington Central and Fitzherbert Terrace in Thorndon.

The US and Israeli embassies are on two of the streets behind the cordons.

The New Zealand Defence Force Explosive Ordnance Disposal team was working with police at both locations. And by 4pm, they had confirmed there was no risk to safety from the packages but investigations are ongoing into both items.

Earlier in the afternoon, Wellington Girls', Queen Margaret and Saint Mary's Colleges, as well as Sacred Heart Cathedral and Thorndon Schools were all under a precautionary lockdown due to the incident.

Pedestrians spoken to by RNZ said it was inconvenient not being able to get down some streets, but many were shocked to see a police cordon on Lambton Quay.

A Thorndon School staff member messaged parents to say the school had gone into lockdown.

"We have been advised that a suspicious package has been dropped off at the American Embassy. This has meant that we went into lockdown along with Queen Margaret College and Wellington Girls' College," they said.

Queen Margaret College also said police had asked it to go into lockdown.

The US Embassy issued a statement, saying: "We are grateful for the quick response from the New Zealand authorities", but said it could not comment further as the investigation was ongoing.