Central London bridges reopen after evacuation due to 'unattended item'

15 February 2022, 11:20 | Updated: 15 February 2022, 11:41

A large evacuation was carried out in central London and four major bridges were closed as police investigated an unattended item as a possible security threat.

At 11.30am the Met confirmed the item had been assessed and was not suspicious.

"The unattended item has been assessed and was found not to be suspicious," wrote the force.

"Road closures will be lifted imminently. We thank the public for their cooperation."

Read more: Matt Hancock broke the law over appointments of Test and Trace chiefs, High Court rules

Read more: Scrap use of 'Sir' and 'Miss' and adopt gender-neutral language, teachers told

Four bridges closed in London as police probe 'unattended item'

Social media users reported earlier on Tuesday that the whole of South Bank as well as Waterloo Station had been evacuated.

"Southbank completely evacuated from the IMAX to St Thomas’," wrote one Twitter user, sharing a photo of a cordoned-off street.

"Mass evacuations around #southbank and #westminster bridge," wrote another.

"I was walking around the eye and everyone is being evacuated from surrounding buildings and the bridge is roped off."

In an earlier tweet, the Metropolitan Police said: "A number of bridges in central London have been closed as a precaution while officers assess an unattended item in the vicinity of South Bank.

"They are: Westminster Bridge, Waterloo Bridge, Hungerford and Golden Jubilee footbridges.

"Please use alternative routes."

Updates to follow