Hundreds of people had to sleep in emergency shelters after a "huge" gas leak in south east London.
An estimated 500 people had to leave their properties after the incident in Penge, south-east London at about 10.30pm.
Four reception centres were set up for residents to shelter from the cold as gas engineers worked to fix the problem.
Police, firefighters and ambulance crews were sent to Queen Adelaide Road during the incident.
Sergeant Lance Chenery from the Bromley neighbourhood policing team described the evacuation as "large".
He said on Twitter: "On scene with MPSBromley dealing with a serious gas leak in Penge SE20 large evacuation of residents."
A Metropolitan Police spokesman said road closures were put in place as a cordon was set up around the site, but residents had been allowed back into their homes at around 5am.
Shortly after the alert Bromley MPS tweeted: "Huge Gas Leak Penge Lane/Queen Adelaide Road. Houses being evacuated. Please avoid this area.
"Road closures remain in place in Penge ... 4 reception centres housing evacuees. Community spirit pulling through."
Once the incident had been cleared up, the police account tweeted: "Delighted but cold residents start returning to their homes in Penge ... Christmas slippers coming in useful!"
