Umbrella prompts armed police call-out in central Queenstown

An umbrella mistaken for a gun has sparked an armed police call-out in central Queenstown today.

One member of the public tells Crux they were told to leave Queenstown Gardens as police swarmed the area.

They say the "cops were all over it".

"We were told to move out. They all have guns."

However a police spokesperson has confirmed the incident was a false alarm.

The spokesperson says police were responding to a report of a possible sighting of a firearm.

"We have since confirmed it was in fact an umbrella."

They say police were armed as a precaution, and this is standard for any job potentially involving a firearm.

Police received the alert at 2.37pm.

The spokesperson could not say how many officers were called to the incident.