World\Europe

Police respond to incident at London's Oxford Circus

By Bo Leung in London | chinadaily.com.cn | Updated: 2017-11-25 02:22

A police investigation is underway after officers responded to reports of shots being fired at London's Oxford Circus underground station.

The Metropolitan Police said officers were called at 4:38pm after a number of reports of shots fired on Oxford Street and underground at Oxford Circus tube station.

However, police said it had not found any evidence of shots being fired, no reports of serious casualties and it had no located any suspects. Its response has now been stood down.

Earlier, police said it was responding as if the incident is terrorist related, adding that armed and unarmed officers are on the scene

Transport for London said it was investigating a "customer incident" and said that trains were not stopping at the station.

Oxford Circus station and the nearby Bond Street, which were shut following the incident, have now reopened and trains are operating normally.

The British Transport Police said they were called at 4:37pm on Friday and advised people to avoid the area.

Police said so far it has received a report of a woman sustaining a minor injury when leaving Oxford Circus station.

In a Twitter statement, the London Fire Brigade said: "We were called at 1643 to an incident at Oxford Circus tube. Three fire engines & 15 firefighters are in attendance. Please avoid the area".

Oxford Street is a popular shopping area in London. The incident happened on Black Friday, a shopping day that draw more people than normal to the high streets.

boleung@mail.chinadailyuk.com