Westminster Bridge 'suspicious vehicle': Police evacuate London landmark and close roads
Officers cordon off streets near Houses of Parliament in security alert
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Areas around the Houses of Parliament were evacuated in a security alert after the discovery of a “suspicious vehicle”.
Police cordoned off Westminster Bridge and Victoria Embankment in central London to both traffic and pedestrians.
Armed officers checked the area and the vehicle, as witnesses reported they heard “loud cracking” sounds.
But after an hour and 20 minutes, the Metropolitan Police announced that the vehicle had been deemed non-suspicious and the roads had reopened.
One witness, Patrick Cardwell, tweeted that it sounded as though a bomb squad had destroyed a suspicious package.
Police were called at 3.15pm after being alerted to the vehicle.
Members of the public were held behind the cordon.
Buses were diverted, and an area of the River Thames was closed to boats and clippers before the all-clear was given.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments