Car hits pedestrians in London; police not treating incident as terrorism

British Police said they are working to establish the circumstances and the cause.  There was no immediate statement on the number or severity of the injuries.

IndiaToday.in  | Edited by Ganesh Kumar Radha Udayakumar
London, October 7, 2017 | UPDATED 21:07 IST
A screenshot taken from a video uploaded by Twitter user @RavensDarkAngel, which shows the suspect being pinned down.A screenshot taken from a video uploaded by Twitter user @RavensDarkAngel, which shows the suspect being pinned down.

Highlights

  • 1
    Police say a number of people have been injured
  • 2
    One person has been detained at the scene
  • 3
    The crash happened at 2:20 pm

British emergency services raced to London's Natural History Museum after a car struck pedestrians Saturday outside the building. Police said a number of people were injured and one person was detained at the scene.

A Reuters reported quoted police as saying they were not treating the incident as an act of terrorism.

The crash happened at 2:20 pm on a day when the central London museum is usually teeming with pedestrians, including international tourists.

Photographs showed a dented silver car and a man being pinned to the ground outside the museum. It was not immediately clear if he was pinned down by police or others at the scene.

Witness Katie Craine said she was coming out of the museum when she saw a man in handcuffs being pinned down on the ground by police near a damaged car.

"He looked really proud of himself," she said. "He was laughing."

The television presenter Greg Scott posted an image of the man.

Another Twitter user even uploaded a video.

The London Ambulance Service was tending to the injured. There was no immediate statement on the number or severity of the injuries.

Shopkeepers in the immediate area were told to evacuate and police established a large security cordon around the area minutes after the incident, closing some roads. Police helicopters circled the scene overhead.

Police said they are working to establish the circumstances of the crash and more information will be provided once details are clear.

The Natural History Museum tweeted that there had been a "serious incident" outside the museum, which is located near the world famous Victoria and Albert Museum and other attractions.

Downing Street said British Prime Minister Theresa May was being briefed on the incident.

(Inputs from AP)

VIDEO | This Twitter video shows the man's detainment from another angle. (Courtesy: @DrewLiquerman/Twitter)