THIS is the caf worker who feared a bomb had been left by his kiosk at York Station - sparking a full-scale evacuation.

Quick-thinking Russell Baldwin, 18, raised the alarm after a man - believed to be a visitor from Mongolia - discarded his shoulder bag at Caf Ritazza.

A massive terror alert was launched within minutes after the tourist was not found following a police search of the concourse.

Thousands of commuters on the rails and roads were affected after the station was cordoned off and trains prevented from stopping.

Mr Russell, who lives off Hull Road, said the drama unfolded when the man asked him - in broken English - to watch his bag while he went to check train times. He had complained it was too heavy.

"I tried to tell him not to leave it, but he couldn't understand and just walked off," he said.

"I got really worried when it was still there two minutes later. I didn't dare touch it in case it set something off.

"The police came over and inspected it and took a description of the guy. I walked round the station with them, but couldn't spot him so they decided to evacuate. All the staff were praising me because they got a three-hour break! It's better to be safe than sorry - I thought it could be a bomb." Police said the Mongolian then returned to the station after the all-clear was given to discover his bag had been blown up in a controlled explosion.

It was believed to contain clothes and CDs.

Sergeant Robin Edwards, who was in charge of the operation, said the man was questioned by police, but released without charge. "We interviewed the man and gave him the relevant advice," he said.

"No further action was taken against him. There could have been some language difficulties in this instance which caused a bit of confusion."

Sgt Edwards said they would be investigating how officers and station staff could communicate safety advice better to foreign visitors.

"If anyone sees anything suspicious they should report it immediately, but we need to avoid panic and over-reaction," he said.

A spokesman for GNER said: "This incident underlines the importance in general of keeping personal items with you."

Updated: 10:02 Thursday, August 04, 2005