- Armed police have been drafted in to the streets of the London after explosion
- Scotland Yard has declared blast a ‘terrorist incident’ as they hunt bomber
- Police and government officials have urged public to report suspicious activity
Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson has called on Londoners to remain calm as security is stepped up in the capital in the wake of the Parsons Green explosion.
Officers from the Metropolitan Police’s counter-terrorism command have launched an investigation following the explosion in west London during the Friday morning rush hour.
Mr Johnson says people should ‘keep calm and go about their normal lives’ as emergency services respond to an incident at a London subway station.
Armed police arrive at Parsons Green today as security is stepped up after the explosion
A number of commuters have been taken to hospital with serious facial burns, as police remain at the scene
Speaking this morning, government minister Boris Johnson called on people to remain calm
Mr Johnson says it would be ‘wrong to speculate,’ and that police and transit authorities ‘are on it.’
A Scotland Yard spokesman added: ‘We urge the public to remain calm but alert and if you have any concerns, see or hear anything suspicious then contact police.’
Prime Minister Theresa May is to chair a meeting of the Government’s Cobra emergencies committee this afternoon to discuss the incident.
Commuters fled in terror after the blast and witnesses reported seeing several people hurt and ‘covered in blood’ after a ‘flash and a bang’ on the District Line Tube.
Bomb disposal experts are at the scene amid fears there could be second bomb
Transport for London said Tube services were suspended between Edgware Road and Wimbledon
Emergency services including armed police rushed to the scene and cordoned off the station.
Pictures posted on social media appeared to show wires protruding from a flaming bucket inside a plastic carrier bag on the floor of a carriage.
The Met added: ‘It is too early to confirm the cause of the fire, which will be subject to the investigation that is now under way by the Met’s Counter Terrorism Command.’