London Bridge terror attack: Witnesses describe ‘running like hell’ after stabbing rampage

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Witnesses have described “running like hell” during a terrorist attack near London Bridge.

A man was shot dead by police following a stabbing which left several people injured.

Onlookers said the suspect was wearing what appeared to be "some sort of explosive" vest. Police later confirmed the device was a "hoax".

The incident took place at around 2pm, as commuters made their way across the busy road.

London Bridge terror attack | 29 November 2019

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Nurse Jackie Bensfield, 32, described hearing “five or six” gunshots as she was travelling on a bus on her way home from work.

She said she rushed off the bus and “ran like” hell, as swarms of people fled the area in fear.

Fellow eyewitness Connor Allen, who was driving his van as the bridge was evacuated said: “Everyone just started running, you heard these pops and that was it. We just got out the van and started running.”

Video footage showed several people tackling a man on the ground on the north side of the bridge as armed police moved in.

One man, who is a plain-clothes police officer, was seen walking away with a knife in his hand before armed officers shot the suspect dead.

Eyewitness Kirsten Jones said she thought the suspect was wearing a “stab vest or some sort of explosive vest”.

The man was initially thought to be wearing an explosive vest (PA)
@HLOBlog/PA

She told BBC News: “We thought it looked like there was a fight going on, people sort of tussling with each other, and then you realise it was police wrestling with one tall, bearded man.

“I had my baby with me so I moved behind the stairwell to be safe, but then there was two shots, or two loud pops, I think, I think they were gun shots - two loud pops - and I also saw a dispensed taser and then the guy was lying on the floor.

“He then pulled his coat back which showed that he had some sort of vest underneath, whether it’s a stab vest, or some sort of explosive vest, the police then really quickly moved backwards, away.

“Of course on the bus, we’re panicking. The police were shouting and staying back from him.”

Police shot the suspect on the busy bridge

Witness Cecilia Sodero was on the top deck of a bus going over London Bridge when she heard shots and saw a man lying on the ground with a “very scary device, like a bomb device”.

“I was like okay, this is unusual, so me and the other passengers started looking outside, to see what’s going on, and we saw like six people holding someone on the floor,” she told Sky News.

“At some point someone says ‘oh, he has a knife’, and we were like, oh my gosh, this guy is supposed to stab someone and people were running away.

“The police officers, finally, they removed the knife. But then what happened is when they shot the guy, the guy is still alive, and they shoot and he’s trying to pull the black jacket off so I was able to see the vest that he was wearing.

“And it seems like a very scary device, like a bomb device, at that point we just ran away from the bus, crossing the bridge in the other direction. The whole thing was very scary to be honest.”

The head of UK counter-terrorism policing Neil Basu later confirmed that suspected explosive was a fake.

He told a press conference: "Due to reports that the suspect might have had an explosive device specialist officers attended the scene.

“However, I can confirm at this time we believe a device that was strapped to the body of the suspect is a hoax explosive device.”

Mr Basu said he would give updates to the families of those injured “as soon as we can get that information”.

“A number of other people received injuries during this incident. As soon as we can provide further updates on their condition, we will,” he told the press conference.

“Our heartfelt sympathies go out to everybody who has been involved in this and is anxiously waiting for information on their loved ones."

Armed police officers on the north side of London Bridge
AP

A number of witnesses have reported seeing victims being cared for by emergency service personnel.

An 31-year-old office worker said he saw a woman being carried away "on a green sheet".

He said: “She was being carried by four police officers and one appeared to be talking to her.”

The witness also described seeing police “drag” another man along the bridge.

“When the guy was being dragged there was a man walking behind him who was topless and had blood on him,” he said.​

Tributes have poured in to the "hero" officers, medical staff and brave members of the public who rushed to help at the scene.

In an emotional statement, London Mayor Sadiq Khan praised the "breathtaking heroism" of those who "literally ran towards danger' to tackle the suspect".

"We saw in one individual - the suspect - the worst of humanity but we also saw in the response from members of the public, but also the emergency services, the very best of humanity," he said.

Witnesses are asked to send footage and images of today's incident to ukpoliceimageappeal.co.uk.

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