‘Serious and tragic’ incident with a ‘number of fatalities’ in Plymouth

A “serious and tragic” incident involving firearms where “a number” of people lost their lives was reported on Thursday night in Plymouth.

Devon and Cornwall Police said there had been a “number of fatalities” in a “serious firearms incident” in Keyham, Plymouth, and “several” other casualties are receiving treatment. The force said it had declared a “critical incident” on Thursday night.

A “significant number” of emergency service vehicles and staff were sent to the scene in the Keyham area of the City. Around three air ambulances were seen around St Levan’s Road just after 6pm.

“Loud bangs” and “gun shots” were reportedly heard by eyewitnesses. There have been unconfirmed reports of a number of fatalities.

Local MP Luke Pollard has said he is awaiting news on the “number of victims” in what he described as a “very grim day for our city and our community”.

Conservative MP for Plymouth Moor View, Johnny Mercer, said the incident was “not terror related.”

He wrote: “The incident is not terror related, and neither is the suspect on the run in Plymouth. Remain calm. It is for the Police to confirm further details. Do not repost chatter or gossip; work with them. We have the best cops in the land.”

Plymouth incident
Screengrab from video taken with permission from the Twitter account @dylan_hainey of helicopters at the scene of incident in the Keyham area
PA

Earlier on Twitter he said: “I am aware of a serious and tragic incident unfolding in Plymouth. Please obey all instructions from the Police and do not post rumour or speculation on social media. I will post news when I have it.”

Local Labour MP Luke Pollard tweeted: “Really worrying news coming out of Keyham in #plymouth. Please can everyone stay safe, stay indoors and follow police advice.”

Later he added: “Update: awaiting confirmation of number of victims but this looks like a very grim day for our city and our community. Please can I ask that you think of the families and our community and not share any images or videos of any of the victims.”

Home Secretary Priti Patel tweeted: “The incident in Plymouth is shocking and my thoughts are with those affected. I have spoken to the Chief Constable and offered my full support. I urge everyone to remain calm, follow police advice and allow our emergency services to get on with their jobs.”

Witnesses were describing the scene on Thursday night.

Dan Baker told the Standard: “I’ve been indoors whilst the incident has unfolded. I saw the police helicopters flying overhead. There have been a number of police helicopters flying overhead for the past couple of hours, and the roads around me are closed with a police presence. Police advice is to stay indoors, so people are awaiting any updates.”

Earlier he tweeted: “Apparently there’s a mass shooting that’s happened in Plymouth, about 5 mins from my front door. Very much not the type of thing that happens in Plymouth. Really hoping the things I’m seeing reported aren’t true - stay safe, neighbours.

“If you are in Keyham, Ham, North Prospect or Stoke…STAY INDOORS. Possible active shooter on the loose. Stay safe, kids.”

Tracey Hallan, a full time mother and carer for her son, said her parents and uncle live close to the scene.

She said they heard “gunshots” adding: “No one know what’s going on yet. It is a really residential area and very quiet. I don’t think there has ever been a shooting in Plymouth before.”

One witness, who gave her name as Sharron, told the BBC the incident was “horrendous and so sad”.

She said: “Firstly, there was shouting, followed by gunshots – three, possibly four to begin with.

“This was when the shooter kicked in the door of a house and randomly started shooting … he ran from the house shooting as he ran and proceeded to shoot at a few people in the Linear Park up from the drive.”

Devon and Cornwall Police said in a statement: “Police were called to a serious firearms incident in Biddick Drive, in the Keyham area of Plymouth at around 6.10pm today [Thursday 12 August].

“Officers and ambulance staff attended. There have been a number of fatalities at the scene and several other casualties are receiving treatment.

“A critical incident has been declared. The area has been cordoned off and police believe the situation is contained.

“Road closures are in place so please avoid the area.

“We are appealing to the public not to speculate or share pictures of the scene on social media or anywhere else.”

The South Western Ambulance Service said it was called at just after 6pm on Thursday to an “ongoing incident.”

It tweeted: “We responded to the incident with a significant number of resources, including Hazardous Area Response Teams (HART), multiple ambulances, air ambulances, multiple doctors and senior paramedics.

“We will provide an update here in due course.”

Shadow home secretary Nick Thomas-Symonds tweeted: “Truly terrible news. Thinking of the families and friends of those who have died and those injured. Thank you to our remarkable emergency services.

“I’ve been in contact with local representatives to express my support for the whole community of Plymouth on this awful evening.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in