RESIDENTS in Barrow have criticised armed police for causing ‘panic’ by failing to warn people in advance of a sniper exercise.

On Sunday morning shoppers were given a shock after spotting a number of police officers armed with rifles on the roof of Craven House in Michaelson Road.

A tweet posted by the Cumbria Police Tactical Support Group revealed the officers were conducting a rifle training exercise but some have said the police should have warned people in advance to avoid panic.

One elderly woman, who lives in Church Street, was shopping in Morrisons when she heard a ‘commotion’.

“I looked round and there was a gathering of people by the trolley part of the car park,” the 76-year-old said.

“I couldn’t hear what was being said but they were all pointing at the roof of the James Fisher building.

“I might be a pensioner but my eyesight is as sharp as an eagle’s and you could see them pointing their guns.

“A couple of my friends, who I meet for lunch in Morrisons cafe, were panicking about it until a chap told us he’d seen something on The Mail about it being a training exercise.

“You’d think it would have been a good idea to tell people beforehand.”

Taxi driver Brian White was gobsmacked when he first saw the snipers.

“I was just sat in my car in Morrisons car park minding my own business, waiting to pick up a fare, when I glanced towards Craven House and saw them,” he said.

“I had to do a double take.

“I was just thinking: ‘What’s going on, is there some sort of hostage situation or something going on at the shipyard?’.

“You’d think they might have put something out in advance, to let people know it was a training exercise, so nobody panicked.

“Everyone was just looking at each other as if to say ‘This is real isn’t it? I’m not hallucinating am I?’.”

The Mail has contacted Cumbria Police for a comment in response to the residents' concerns.