Young man in life-threatening condition after car ploughs into fountain at London Piccadilly Circus
A car has ploughed into the centre of Piccadilly Circus in central London injuring two 22-year-old men, with one in a life-threatening condition.
Emergency services were called to the scene in the early hours of Sunday morning and the area has now been closed off.
Pictures of the junction show a black BMW flipped onto its roof with debris everywhere. It appears to have driven directly at the pedestrianised part of Piccadilly Circus, which it home to the Shaftesbury memorial fountain popularly known as Eros.
The car only got as far as the pavement and stopped short of the landmark, which is topped with a statue of Anteros, the Greek god of requited love.
The car was left lying on its roof with debris strewn across the ground (Steph Day)
Two men, both aged 22, were treated at the scene, with one being taken to a major trauma centre and another to a local hospital.
Police said that one of the men is in a life threatening condition, while the other’s injuries are not believed to be life-threatening. No pedestrians were injured and no other vehicles were involved.
(PA)
Ambulance crews, a paramedic in a fast response car, an incident response officer and members of the London Ambulance Service hazardous area response team all rushed to the scene of the crash on Saturday morning. They had been alerted to the collision at 5:25am and the first paramedic arrived at Piccadilly Circus in less than four minutes.
A London Ambulance Service spokesperson said: “We were called at 5.25am today (29 June) to reports of a road traffic collision on Piccadilly, W1J.
The scene after a car crashed near the Shaftesbury Memorial Fountain (PA)
“We sent a number of resources, including ambulance crews, a paramedic in a fast response car, an incident response officer and members of our hazardous area response team (HART). We also dispatched a trauma team in a car from London’s Air Ambulance.
“Our first paramedic arrived on scene in less than four minutes.
“We treated two people. We took one patient to a major trauma centre and the other patient to a local hospital.”
The roads leading into Piccadilly Circus have been closed off (CWconstruction)
A Met Police spokesperson said: “At 05:28hrs on Sunday, 29 June police were called to Piccadilly Circus following a single vehicle road traffic collision. A black BMW had overturned, ending up next to the Eros fountain.
“Officers attended with London Ambulance Service paramedics and the London Fire Brigade.
“Two men, both aged 22 and both occupants of the vehicle, were taken to hospital.
One person was taken to a major trauma centre and the other to a local hospital. (PA)
“One of the men is in a life threatening condition. The other man’s injuries are not believed to be life-threatening.
“No pedestrians were injured and no other vehicles are believed to be involved.
“There are road closures in place around Piccadilly Circus.
“We recognise the disruption this will cause. We will look to remove these at the earliest opportunity but only when we have carried out the work required to investigate this serious incident.”