London Burning

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LONDON RIOTS: David Cameron Returns Home As Police Face Gangs With Petrol Bombs
By Emily Allen and Rob Cooper
Last updated at 1:43 PM on 9th August 2011

David Cameron today warned rioters that they would face the 'full force of the law' as he recalled Parliament, after violence swept across the country for a third night. An unprecedented 16,000 police officers will be on the streets of the capital tonight, the Prime Minister announced, compared with just 6,000 last night. Today huge swathes of the capital woke up to the charred debris of burned out buildings and streets littered with waste.

Theresa May caused fury today by appearing to rule out using the Army and water cannons to quell any future disorder. Police were last night criticised for being absent when much of the looting and ransacking took place and, when they were present, keeping their distance from rioters.

Today a 26-year-old man who was shot as he sat in a car during rioting in Croydon died in hospital.

After cutting short his Tuscany holiday to deal with the worsening public disorder crisis, Mr Cameron said today: 'We will do everything necessary to restore order to Britain's streets and to make them safe for the law-abiding.

'Let me, first of all, completely condemn the scenes that we have seen on our television screens and people have witnessed in their communities.

'These are sickening scenes - scenes of people looting, vandalising, thieving, robbing, scenes of people attacking police officers and even attacking fire crews as they're trying to put out fires. This is criminality, pure and simple, and it has to be confronted and defeated.

'I feel huge sympathy for the families who've suffered, innocent people who've been burned out of their houses and to businesses who have seen their premises smashed, their products looted and their livelihoods potentially ruined.

'I also feel for all those who live in fear because of these appalling scenes that we've seen on the streets of our country. People should be in no doubt that we are on the side of the law- abiding - law-abiding people who are appalled by what has happened in their own communities.

'I am determined, the Government is determined that justice will be done and these people will see the consequences of their actions.

'And I have this very clear message to those people who are responsible for this wrongdoing and criminality: you will feel the full force of the law and if you are old enough to commit these crimes you are old enough to face the punishment.

'And to these people I would say this: you are not only wrecking the lives of others, you're not only wrecking your own communities - you are potentially wrecking your own life too.

'My office this morning has spoken to the Speaker of the House of Commons and he has agreed that Parliament will be recalled for a day on Thursday so I can make a statement to Parliament and we can hold a debate and we are all able to stand together in condemnation of these crimes and also to stand together in determination to rebuild these communities.'

Last night copycat violence broke out in Liverpool, Birmingham and Bristol, with further reports of violence in Nottingham and Leeds as it spread from the capital for the first time.

Among the most serious of incidents was the arrest of three people on suspicion of attempting to murder a police officer in north London early this morning. Armoured vehicles - known as 'Jankels' - were used to push back a mob of 150 rioters in Clapham, south London, while dozens of businesses were gutted by fire or looted until shelves were bare.

Children aged as young as eight were reportedly seen fleeing shops with games consoles in Ealing.

Despite 6,000 officers on the streets of London alone, many residents reported a lack of police while marauding gangs were a law unto themselves.

An 'unprecedented' number of police will be on the streets of London tonight with 'all able-bodied officers in the Met' out on duty, said Scotland Yard Deputy Assistant Commissioner Stephen Kavanagh.

Officers from 26 forces outside the capital have also been drafted in to help out as police confirmed that 525 people have now been arrested since rioting began on Saturday and over 100 have been charged.

England's friendly international against the Netherlands tomorrow at Wembley has been called off amid fears that it could be targeted by thugs. West Ham and Charlton football clubs had already postponed their Carling Cup clashes tonight on police advice.

Amid the unrest, with a year to go until the games, senior members of the International Olympic Committee are in the capital today. As London is cleaned-up they are expected to watch beach volleyball at Whitehall.

TV PRESENTER 'ARRESTS' RIOTER
Television star Dan Snow 'arrested' a rioter as he looted a shop outside his London home, it was revealed today.

The 6ft 6in presenter confronted yobs as they raided a shoe shop outside his property in Notting Hill gate at around 11pm last night.

As around 50 people caused chaos outside he bravely rugby-tackled a thug and held him until police arrived.

He told The Times: 'As I came up I could hear police sirens coming up the road.

'One of them belted out of the shoe shop. He didn't see me coming, so I rugby-tackled him. He was quite surprrised.'

Last night 44 police officers were injured - four of them seriously - as the capital endured the worst night of violence it has seen for decades.

London Ambulance Service said it took 22 people to hospital from the main areas of the disturbances, although others were treated at the scene or made their own way to accident and emergency departments. Some rioters threw missiles at ambulances or threatened medics as they tried to care for the injured.

Deputy Mayor of London Kit Malthouse told LBC radio: 'Officers were extremely brave. What we are trying to do this morning is maximise the number of police officers we have out again tonight.

'We have something like 6,000 on duty last night. We need to get even more out tonight, and that includes officers from outside London, so we are appealing to other forces to help us where they can.'

The violence started on Saturday after father-of-four Mark Duggan, 29, was shot dead by police marksman last Thursday. This morning a post-mortem examination revealed he died from a single gunshot wound to the chest. An inquest was adjourned until December 12.

Acting Scotland Yard Commissioner Tim Godwin said there had been 'far too many' young people on the capital's streets last night and called on parents and guardians to keep youngsters in tonight.

He said there are no plans for the army to get involved.

'We've got the full support of the Government in getting as much mutual aid from outside of London as is necessary and I would like to take this opportunity to remind people of what I said last night as things were escalating.

'There were far too many young people on the streets of London last night, in places which were both dangerous and violent and I urge all the citizens of London, and the guardians and parents of young people especially, to keep them in tonight.

'We will be very robust in policing any disorder we get tonight.

'This is not just a game. This is criminality, this is burglary, this is violence, and we will pursue each and every one that has been involved in this and we will be making sure they are brought to justice and to court.

'We have a significant investigative asset that's in place.'

In one of the most serious incidents, the well-known Reeves furniture store in Croydon, south London, which first opened in 1867, was completely destroyed by a huge fire.

Owner Trevor Reeves told Sky News: 'It has just provided my family and the 15 or 20 staff and families that were supported, it's just completely destroyed.

'Words fail me. It's just gone, it's five generations. My father is distraught at the moment. It's just mindless thuggery.'

Residents complained that police were very slow to respond as a huge Debenhams store was ransacked. This morning the whole high street was cordoned off as a major investigation and clear-up got underway.

Rioting began in Hackney shortly after 4pm yesterday when a mob of hooded youths began hurling missiles at officers and setting fire to bins and cars. Masked rioters on BMX bicycles armed with batons attacked a crowded London bus during the evening rush-hour, chasing terrified commuters as they tried to escape.

The thugs, some as young as eight, forced the driver to stop the double-decker by pelting it with champagne bottles stolen from a nearby Tesco. About 40 passengers – some carrying screaming toddlers – burst out of the exits and sprinted away.

Within hours similar scenes erupted in Lewisham, spreading to Peckham, Deptford and Croydon in south east London.

Hundreds of fires were started all over the capital, from Camden in the north, Woolwich in the south east, Ealing in west London and then, more worryingly as police lost control of the streets last night, locals were forced to take the law into their own hands to protect their homes and businesses.

In Dalston and Hackney, north-east London, shopkeepers and their families fought back against looting youths and forced them from the streets. As surrounding areas were pillaged members of the town's large Turkish community stood firm outside their homes and businesses.

Home Secretary Theresa May this morning appeared to rule out bringing in the Army and using water cannon. She told BBC Breakfast: 'The way we police is by consent.'

'British policing has always meant and always depended on the support of local communities and that's what we need now.'

She told Sky News the capital needed 'robust policing' - and rejected suggestions that police budget cutting had any impact on violence.

'Don't let police budgets be used as an excuse for what is going on on our streets is sheer criminality and nothing else.'

Patrick Mercer, the Tory MP and former Army officer, hit out and told the Telegraph that tougher policing should be used in mainland Britain for the first time.

He said: ‘I find it strange that we are willing to use these sort of measures against the Irish yet when Englishmen step out of line and behave in this atrocious and appalling way, we are happy to mollycoddle them.'

Met Police Assistant Commissioner Stephen Kavanagh appeared to contradict the Home Secretary and said using the military had not been ruled out.

'All options were discussed last night and that means, not that we're doing it, the people of London need to know that the Commissioner and his management board team are considering everything and working through those options as we go forward,' he told BBC Breakfast.

Mr Kavanagh said it was 'a shocking and appalling morning for London to wake up to' and he was struck by the 'sheer scale and speed with which the attacks took place across London last night'. It 'was truly unprecedented' he said.

He said there was a 'changing nature' in the make-up of the rioters, with the profile changing 'dramatically' last night from 14 to 17-year-olds to 'older groups in cars doing organised looting'.

He added: 'And there was the far more focused attempt at injuring London Ambulance staff, there to help the community, trying to injure Fire Brigade officers and, of course, police officers.'

Elsewhere, West Midlands Police said it had made about 100 arrests and confirmed that a police station in Handsworth, Birmingham, was on fire. Merseyside Police said there were a number of incidents in South Liverpool, including cars being set on alight.

Avon and Somerset Police reported around 150 rioters were in Bristol city centre, with main roads closed and a number of shops damaged.

Gangs of looters - who appeared to be teenagers and young adults from a range of different backgrounds - raided hundreds of shops and businesses across London, making off with TVs and other electrical goods, cigarettes, clothes and alcohol.

Staff at Birmingham Children's Hospital formed a 'human shield' as they barricaded themselves inside after rioters threatened to set it on fire - in an evil bid to 'win respect' from fellow thugs.

Police ordered an immediate lock-down of the hospital after rioters used Twitter to spread the word and encourage thugs to storm the wards just after 9pm last night. Gangs of rioters rounded on the hospital - which cares for some of Britain's sickest children - armed with broken bottles and knives hoping to 'out-riot' yobs running amok in London.

A hospital spokesman said: 'We were told by police to lock the hospital down. They asked us not to let anyone in or out until it was safe to do so. 'It is extremely dangerous and our main concern is for the welfare of our patients and staff.'

In Medway, Kent, a group of around 15 youths arrived by train and went on the rampage, while violence was also reported in Chatham, Rainham and Gillingham.

Yob also went on the rampage in Nottingham where up to 40 cars were damaged, there were attempts to loot shops and a container of 200 tyres was set on fire.

Cars and wheelie bins were torched during five hours of violence across Liverpool. A Tesco store in Myrtle Street was looted and police came under attack in Admiral Street with some of the rioters aged as young as 10.

Of the attempted murder of a police officer, Scotland Yard said the three people were apprehended following an incident in Brent, north west London, that led to a police officer being injured by a car while trying to stop looters.

WHERE THE VIOLENCE HAPPENED
HACKNEY Masked rioters on BMX bicycles armed with batons attacked a crowded London bus during the evening rush-hour, chasing terrified commuters as they tried to escape

The thugs forced the driver to stop the double-decker by pelting it with champagne bottles stolen from a nearby Tesco

A thug used an axe to break into a Tesco supermarket. More than 30 gang members then streamed in, stealing bottles of alcohol which they used as missiles in later attacks

CROYDON Fire destroyed a landmark furniture store. Black smoke could be seen across South London as House of Reeves, on Reeves Corner, was razed

Gangs of youths, some armed with knives, fought with police as supermarkets and other businesses were attacked

Looters raided a branch of Argos, smashing the rear doors and making off with satnavs, CD players and camcorders

PECKHAM A woman and small child were taken by ambulance to hospital with burns and breathing difficulties after a shop below their flat was set ablaze

Hundreds of teenagers had earlier smashed up a bus before setting it on fire. Wheelie bins were also set alight and placed in the middle of the road

A line of police stood helpless a quarter of a mile away in Rye Lane

BIRMINGHAM Shop windows were smashed in Birmingham as large crowds gathered following rumours of copycat riots

Police established an exclusion zone up to half a mile around the city’s famous Bullring shopping centre. McDonald’s, Jessops and LA fitness were targeted, with bins thrown through the windows

Disturbances were also reported in EALING, FULHAM, LEWISHAM, CLAPHAM, OXFORD CIRCUS, WALTHAM FOREST, WALTHAMSTOW ISLINGTON, PONDERS END, CAMDEN, KENSINGTON AND KING'S ROAD

A force spokesman said: 'At approximately 2.50am on Tuesday, August 9 a male police officer was injured by a car in Fulton Road, Brent. He has been taken to a north London hospital where he remains in a stable condition.

'It is believed the injury occurred when police stopped some cars as their occupants were suspected of being involved in looting of a nearby electrical store. It is believed the driver of one of the cars drove away injuring the police officer in the process. Three people were later stopped by police and arrested on suspicion of attempted murder.'

As the trouble intensified, at 2.30am the Met changed its tactics in the Lavender Hill, Clapham, introducing armoured vehicles to push back more than 150 people where substantial damage was being caused to shops and local businesses.

Because the tactic proved a success police are now considering using the same methods elsewhere.

A large blaze at a Sony distribution centre near Enfield, north London, also sent plumes of thick smoke across the sky last night.

In Croydon, one woman was seen leaping from a burning building on Surrey Street as flames threatened to engulf her. Police also revealed a man was shot in the suburb, and though he is in a serious condition he was not fatally injured.

Disturbances were reported in Harrow, in the north west of the city and Clapham, in south London, where shops were looted, including the Debenhams store and a row of shops in Lavender Hill.

Unrest was also been reported in Fulham, at Wandsworth Bridge Road, and in Ealing in west London where windows at a Tesco supermarket were smashed and rubbish strewn across the street.

A bus at High Street Kensington was attacked and unrest was reported in Camden, Chalk Farm, Enfield, Bethnal Green and Portabello Road, Notting Hill.

Some people in Hackney and Clapham Junction were forced to flee their homes following the violence. Police have also urged football clubs to cancel any up-coming London fixtures this week until the violence has been brought under control.

Last night about 1,700 extra police officers were brought in from neighbouring forces to help contain the trouble, including officers from Thames Valley Police, Kent, Essex, Hampshire, Surrey, Northamptonshire, Cambridgeshire, Suffolk and Sussex.

Commander Christine Jones, said: 'The violence we have seen is simply inexcusable. Ordinary people have had their lives turned upside down by this mindless thuggery. The Met will ensure that those responsible will face the consequences of their actions and be arrested.'

Roy Ramm, a former Scotland Yard commander, said the Met could lose control of London’s streets.

‘That has to be a possibility and the Home Secretary and commissioner are going to have to make some difficult decisions.

He said that by using mobile phones and social networks ‘these people can mass and change direction very quickly and the police tactics are being subverted.’

Croydon pub landlord Alan McCabe told BBC he was furious about the fires raging in Croydon.

'I have never seen such a disregard for human life. I hope they rot in hell.

'The grief they have caused people, the fear they have put in people's hearts, decent people who have done nothing to anyone.'

In Birmingham police said several shops near the Bullring shopping centre were attacked and property stolen as youths rampaged around the city centre causing thousands of pounds worth of damage.

The disorder started at about 7.45pm when a mob of around 40 youths charged from the station into the main shopping area smashing shops and causing havoc. One group grabbed hundreds of coat hangers throwing them onto the streets and tipping over rubbish bins.

Among the damaged shops were a Sainsbury's Local, Adidas, JD Sports, Primark, TMobile and stationery shop Savers, which is located yards away from Jamie Oliver's restaurant Jamie's Italian.

Shocked diners at Wagamamas and Jamie's Italian stopped eating to stand up and look at the riots in progress.

Back in London, on Peckham High Street, around 500 youths gathered near riot police, while a gang of 10 looters raided a loan shop and an ABC Pharmacy was targeted by men using plastic bags to cover their faces.

Dresses were among the items taken from a clothing store, while a cashpoint and a branch of Coral bookmakers were also badly damaged.

Three lines of riot police charged at a large group of youths outside Peckham Library, forcing them to retreat.

At Westfield Shopping Centre in Shepherd's Bush, barriers were erected, and Kilburn High Street was closed off. Police were also on the streets in Harlesden.

The widespread rioting led to railway station closures while numerous roads were also shut.

Among the mainline stations that were shut last night were Peckham Rye and Queens Road, Peckham, as well as Barking in east London, West Croydon in south east London, and Bethnal Green in east London.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2023874/LONDON-RIOTS-David-Cameron-returns-home-police-face-gangs-petrol-bombs.html#ixzz1UXJFGWgT