At 2:40 pm, Metropolitan Police was called to Westminster Bridge, SW1, in the heart of London after reports of loud explosions and gunshots exactly one year after the Brussels suicide-bomb attack. The London Eye had been halted with riders still inside and surrounding buildings, including Parliament, have been put on lockdown as Metropolitan Police undergo a full counter-terrorism investigation.
A reported middle-aged man drove a gray Hyundai i40 into civilians on the bridge before crashing into the gates of New Palace Yard resulting in the death of two people. Twenty are still in critical condition. Among the injured were French teenagers on a school visit to London, French PM states. Additionally, a heroic Officer was stabbed to death by the attacker as he tried to protect the lives of those in Parliament building. Paramedics fought to save his life on the cobble courtyard and Foreign Office Minister, Tobias Ellwood, was among those who rushed to his side. Witnesses state that the apparent assailant was shot by officers at the Houses of Parliament moments after at about 2:45.
A/Dep Cmsr Rowley “Sadly, I can confirm that four people have died including one police officer” #Westminster
— Metropolitan Police (@metpoliceuk) March 22, 2017
Metropolitan police have advised those in London to avoid several areas, including; Whitehall, Westminster Bridge, Lambeth Bridge and Victoria. Westminster and Parliament Sq Station have been temporarily closed as Transport For London has stated.
Commander Harrington of the Metropolitan Police has released a full statement on the matter, which he describes indefinitely as a “terrorist attack”:
Full statement from Commander Harrington following the incident in #Westminster #London pic.twitter.com/vMPCXKq2Ft
— Metropolitan Police (@metpoliceuk) March 22, 2017
