London: St Martin-in-the-Fields church evacuated after bag of chemical waste dumped outside

The London Fire Brigade attended a "chemical incident" close to Trafalgar Square after a bag of potentially hazardous substance was discovered near a church. Firefighters wearing breathing apparatus investigated a bag of possible chemical waste that had been left near St Martin-in-the-Fields church in Trafalgar Square. Around 20 people were evacuated from the church as a precaution.

Station manager Sam Kazmanli, who was at the scene, said: "Firefighters used detection and monitoring equipment to find out what chemicals were involved. We found that the bag contained industrial strength chemical granules inside. We double-bag the contents and it was removed by London Ambulance Service's Hazardous Area Response Team." Fire crews from Soho and surrounding stations also attended the scene.