The Shard evacuated: Customers forced to abandon belongings after fire alert

The Shard was evacuated this afternoon after a small fire at a luxury Chinese restaurant.

Customers and office workers were told to leave the building shortly after 3.10pm on Monday, with many having to walk down dozens of flights of stairs.

Charlie Collins posted on Twitter: "Just walked down the shard from level 33. #evacuated. Coat still up there. #ideal."

A spokesman for London Fire Brigade said crews were called after a fire alarm was activated, but said it was found to be a false alarm.

A Metropolitan Police Service spokeswoman was unable to find a record of a call out to the skycraper this afternoon.

A spokesman for Real Estate Management, which operates The Shard, said: "A small pan fire in Hutong set off our fire systems this afternoon.

"All of our safety procedures worked as they were designed to do – this meant we evacuated part of the building.

"London Fire Brigade attended, as is standard procedure, and confirmed that the affected floors could be reopened. The building is now reoccupied.

"We’re sorry for any inconvenience caused but have a duty to put the safety of our customers first at all times.”