A suspected World War Two bomb discovered near the Houses of Parliament has been removed and will be disposed of safely, police said.
The operation by the Royal Navy and Metropolitan Police to recover the unexploded bomb led to disruption in central London on Thursday.
Waterloo and Westminster bridges were forced to shut for several hours, Westminster underground station closed and river traffic halted after the device was dredged up near the Victoria Embankment.
Scores of police raided the area to carry out safety checks and the riverfront remained closed until around 3am on Friday morning.
Large crowds of tourists and passers-by had gathered at the police tape with some calmly taking photographs of the odd sight.
Michael Hutchinson was waiting at a packed Westminster tube station at about 6pm when he was suddenly told to evacuate.
The 26-year-old marketing executive told the Standard: “I was on the platform and we were told to evacuate immediately.
“We all poured out on to the street. The authorities are there moving people on.
“I was waiting for my train and it came through at the point the announcement was made. I could see the conductor getting a call telling him to keep moving.
“Everybody is a little angry, a little bit annoyed but these things happen.
“It is a bit shocking. When something like that happens is it a bit worrying. Police are saying it could be a while before the area reopens.”
A woman who works nearby added: “We were just walking by parliament when the police started telling everyone they needed to evacuate the area.
“We heard people talking about a bomb and didn't know what was happening.
“Given where we were we thought it might be something terrorist related and we were a bit scared."
A Port of London Authority spokesman told the BBC that the suspicious object measured around "2 ft by 1 ft".
Scotland Yard said specialist officers had assessed the device and alerted the Royal Navy after they were called to the River Thames at 5.15pm on Thursday.
"The Royal Navy have now successfully removed the ordnance and will dispose of it," a police spokesman said.
The disruption had threatened to derail Lost In London, a "live cinema" project by Woody Harrelson.
Read More
The US actor planned to recreate a disastrous night out in the capital with the film broadcast directly into cinemas from location.
Some scenes were shot near Waterloo Bridge, but the event went ahead as planned, according to Kate Muir, chief film critic of The Times.
She tweeted: "Woody Harrelson's live-streamed movie £lostinlondon succeeded without a glitch, despite, apparently, a WWII bomb scare in the Thames."
MORE ABOUT