- Awards
- 44
An explosion that injured a number of people at Parsons Green underground station in west London was a terrorist incident, the Met police have said.
Commuters on a tube train reported hearing a bang and seeing a fireball flying down the carriage during Friday morning rush-hour. Pictures and video, purporting to be from the train carriage, were posted of flames coming out of a carrier bag containing a white bucket.
London ambulance service said it had taken 18 patients to a number of hospitals. None was thought to be in a serious or life-threatening condition.
Speaking outside New Scotland Yard, Mark Rowley, the assistant Met police commissioner, said: “We now assess that this was a detonation of an improvised explosive device.”
He said most of those injured were believed to have suffered flash burns.
Rowley said the investigation was being led by the Met’s counter-terrorism command and involved hundreds of detectives with support from MI5. He said there would be an enhanced police presence in the wake of the attack, particularly in the capital and on the public transport system.
Rowley refused to say whether there was anyone in custody in connection with the incident.
Downing Street said the prime minister, Theresa May, would be chairing a meeting of the government’s Cobra emergencies committee on Friday morning and was receiving regular updates on the situation.
May said: “My thoughts are with those injured at Parsons Green and the emergency services who, once again, are responding swiftly and bravely to a suspected terrorist incident.”
Armed officers attended the scene, along with the London ambulance service and London fire brigade, though their official statements revealed little about the nature of the incident.
St Mary’s hospital, Paddington, declared a “major incident” in anticipation of an influx of patients from Parsons Green.
A Transport for London spokeswoman said the District line had been suspended between Earl’s Court and Wimbledon due to a security alert.
One witness said there were injuries at Parsons Green after a “stampede” of passengers.
Media technology consultant Richard Aylmer-Hall, 53, was sitting on the District line train bound for central London at about 8.20am when he said there was panic around him.
“Suddenly there was panic, lots of people shouting, screaming, lots of screaming,” he said. “There was a woman on the platform who said she had seen a bag, a flash and a bang, so obviously something had gone off.”
He added: “I saw crying women, there was lots of shouting and screaming, there was a bit of a crush on the stairs going down to the streets. Some people got pushed over and trampled on. I saw two women being treated by ambulance crews.”
Witnesses said that children, who were on their way to school, were among the injured.
A reporter from London’s Metro newspaper said he had seen people with facial burns. The BBC’s Sophie Raworth said she had seen two ambulances leaving the scene and several people treated, including a woman with burns.
Chris Wildish, who was on the train, said he saw a “device” in the last carriage. “It was a white bucket, a builder’s bucket, in a white Aldi bag or Lidl bag,” he told BBC 5 Live.
“Flames were still coming out of it when I saw it and had a lot of wires hanging out of it – I can only assume it was done on purpose,” he said. “It was standing against the door of the rear-most carriage.”
Five Metropolitan police vans arrived on the scene at about 9.40am along with a BTP command van. A 100-metre cordon was erected around the station.
The incident is the fourth terrorist attack in the UK this year, following incidents at Westminster, London Bridge, Manchester and Finsbury Park in north London. The UK terrorism threat level remains at severe, meaning an attack is highly likely.
The mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said the city “utterly condemns the hideous individuals who attempt to use terror to harm us and destroy our way of life”. He urged Londoners to “remain calm and vigilant”.
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news...t-line-suspended-in-west-london-over-incident
Commuters on a tube train reported hearing a bang and seeing a fireball flying down the carriage during Friday morning rush-hour. Pictures and video, purporting to be from the train carriage, were posted of flames coming out of a carrier bag containing a white bucket.
London ambulance service said it had taken 18 patients to a number of hospitals. None was thought to be in a serious or life-threatening condition.
Speaking outside New Scotland Yard, Mark Rowley, the assistant Met police commissioner, said: “We now assess that this was a detonation of an improvised explosive device.”
He said most of those injured were believed to have suffered flash burns.
Rowley said the investigation was being led by the Met’s counter-terrorism command and involved hundreds of detectives with support from MI5. He said there would be an enhanced police presence in the wake of the attack, particularly in the capital and on the public transport system.
Rowley refused to say whether there was anyone in custody in connection with the incident.
Downing Street said the prime minister, Theresa May, would be chairing a meeting of the government’s Cobra emergencies committee on Friday morning and was receiving regular updates on the situation.
May said: “My thoughts are with those injured at Parsons Green and the emergency services who, once again, are responding swiftly and bravely to a suspected terrorist incident.”
Armed officers attended the scene, along with the London ambulance service and London fire brigade, though their official statements revealed little about the nature of the incident.
St Mary’s hospital, Paddington, declared a “major incident” in anticipation of an influx of patients from Parsons Green.
A Transport for London spokeswoman said the District line had been suspended between Earl’s Court and Wimbledon due to a security alert.
One witness said there were injuries at Parsons Green after a “stampede” of passengers.
Media technology consultant Richard Aylmer-Hall, 53, was sitting on the District line train bound for central London at about 8.20am when he said there was panic around him.
“Suddenly there was panic, lots of people shouting, screaming, lots of screaming,” he said. “There was a woman on the platform who said she had seen a bag, a flash and a bang, so obviously something had gone off.”
He added: “I saw crying women, there was lots of shouting and screaming, there was a bit of a crush on the stairs going down to the streets. Some people got pushed over and trampled on. I saw two women being treated by ambulance crews.”
Witnesses said that children, who were on their way to school, were among the injured.
A reporter from London’s Metro newspaper said he had seen people with facial burns. The BBC’s Sophie Raworth said she had seen two ambulances leaving the scene and several people treated, including a woman with burns.
Chris Wildish, who was on the train, said he saw a “device” in the last carriage. “It was a white bucket, a builder’s bucket, in a white Aldi bag or Lidl bag,” he told BBC 5 Live.
“Flames were still coming out of it when I saw it and had a lot of wires hanging out of it – I can only assume it was done on purpose,” he said. “It was standing against the door of the rear-most carriage.”
Five Metropolitan police vans arrived on the scene at about 9.40am along with a BTP command van. A 100-metre cordon was erected around the station.
The incident is the fourth terrorist attack in the UK this year, following incidents at Westminster, London Bridge, Manchester and Finsbury Park in north London. The UK terrorism threat level remains at severe, meaning an attack is highly likely.
The mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said the city “utterly condemns the hideous individuals who attempt to use terror to harm us and destroy our way of life”. He urged Londoners to “remain calm and vigilant”.
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news...t-line-suspended-in-west-london-over-incident
