Boris calls COBRA meeting over Poppy Day car bomb as fourth man is arrested following 'terror incident': CCTV shows taxi EXPLODE at Liverpool Women's Hospital seconds after 'suicide bomber detonates home-made device' and cabbie leaps out
Boris Johnson will today chair a COBRA meeting called over the Liverpool Women's Hospital suicide bomb after police confirmed it is being treated as a terror attack and arrested a fourth suspect as footage of the horrifying moment the car exploded outside a maternity hospital also emerged.
Cab driver David Perry has been credited with saving many lives after keeping the suspect inside his cab in the moments before it blew up as detectives and MI5 spies probe whether the bomber was motivated to kill himself and others on Remembrance Sunday.
Ahead of this afternoon's COBRA meeting at Downing Street, the Prime Minister said the the taxi driver caught up in the Liverpool explosion acted with 'incredible presence of mind and bravery' while the city's Mayor Joanne Anderson said: 'The taxi driver, in his heroic efforts, has managed to divert what could have been an absolutely awful disaster at the hospital', adding that he had 'locked the doors' to keep the bomber in the back.
Detectives say the male passenger who died in the blast had asked to go Liverpool's Women's Hospital, around ten minutes drive from his home in Rutland Avenue, which police have sealed off. They also evacuated eight neighbours overnight amid fears it was being used as a bomb factory.
Friends of Mr Perry believe the target may have been the city's nearby Service of Remembrance at Liverpool's Anglican Cathedral, where 1,200 military personnel, veterans and families of the fallen had gathered less than a mile from the hospital. Roads around the cathedral had been closed before the 11am Poppy Day event.
Speaking at press conference this morning, Assistant Chief Constable Russ Jackson of Counter Terrorism North West revealed they know the identity of the taxi passenger and believe that he made the bomb.
He said: 'It is not clear what the motivation for this incident is. Our enquiries indicate that an improvised explosive device has been manufactured and our assumption so far is that this was built by the passenger in the taxi.
'The reason why he then took it to the Women's Hospital is unknown, as is the reason for its sudden explosion. We are of course aware that there were Remembrance events just a short distance away from the hospital and that the ignition occurred shortly before 11am.
'We cannot at this time draw any connection with this but it is a line of inquiry we are pursuing. Although, the motivation for this incident is yet to be understood, given all the circumstances, it has been declared a terrorist incident and counter-terrorism policing are continuing with the investigation. Our enquiries will now continue to seek to understand how the device was built, the motivation for the incident and to understand if anyone else was involved in it'.
After the 11am bombing, three men aged 21, 26 and 29 were arrested yesterday under S41 of the Terrorism Act at a terraced house Sutcliffe Street, Liverpool. Unverified footage of the raid, shared on social media, suggests that one team of officers came over the back wall on a ladder to prevent any escapes. This morning, again in the Kensington area, a further man aged 20 was arrested on suspicion of the same terror offence.
CCTV has emerged capturing the horrifying moment Mr Perry's taxi became a fireball outside the reception of Liverpool Women's Hospital, shortly before the 11am minute's silence was due to take place yesterday.
The dark-coloured taxi is seen pulling into the hospital car park at speed but it explodes before it comes to a halt outside the reception. All the windows shattered and smoke pours out of the car before a dazed Mr Perry opens the driver's door and staggers out into the road around six seconds after the blast.
The injured taxi driver then appears to warn others to stay away from the car and there has also been praise for a man in high-viz yellow who runs towards the blazing taxi to help him. Around 30 seconds after the explosion, with smoke belching out of the car, it is engulfed by flames with the bomber still inside. One witness can be seen looking into the back seat passenger. He decides the passenger is dead and can't be saved.
Police are scrambling to discover the bomber's true target. If it was the hospital, Dr Joseph Downing, a fellow in nationalism at LSE who studies security and terrorism, told MailOnline: ‘It’s quite strange and a worrying new pivot towards such a ‘’soft’’ target as a hospital that we have not seen before in Europe.’
Here's what we know about the terror attack so far:
- The taxi containing the alleged suicide bomber pulled up outside Liverpool Women's Hospital and explodes at 10.57am yesterday. New footage shows the driver David Perry jump out after the blast having apparently locked the doors to prevent him getting into the hospital;
- Three men aged 21, 26 and 27, are arrested with two properties around a mile from the scene being searched by police: Sutcliffe Street in Kensington. This morning a fourth suspect, 20, was arrested in Kensington, also under the Terrorism Act.
- Armed Police surrounded a property in Rutland Avenue close to Liverpool's Sefton Park last night, where the suicide bomber had been picked up from. Officers evacuated neighbouring properties, suggesting this is where the IED was built. The police activity reduced at 3.30am but the street remains cordoned off;
- MI5 are helping police in the north-west with an Islamist terror attack among the scenarios being investigated;
- One theory police are probing is that the detonators on a potential bomb exploded but not the main charge. Experts tell MailOnline that the bomb was probably not a high explosive such as TNT but of a hydrocarbon substance, most likely petrol.
This is the moment the taxi carrying an alleged suicide bomber exploded outside a Liverpool hospital in what police and MI5 are now probing as a Poppy Day terror attack
Police at the sealed off house in Sutcliffe Street where three men were arrested last night and another suspect nearby this morning
A male was arrested in the area close to the house in Sutcliffe Street, Kensington, this morning. It is not known if he is the fourth suspect held by police over the taxi bombing
Hero taxi driver David Perry (left, and right with his wife Rachel) who apparently locked a suicide bomber in his car before a blast ripped through the vehicle outside a maternity hospital in Liverpool on Sunday
These are the events that led to the explosion outside the Liverpool Women's Hospital yesterday and the arrests and raids that followed
The taxi is seen travelling into the hospital car park at a fair speed at just before 10.57am, at a time when the driver may have chosen to lock the doors to keep his passenger inside having become suspicious of him
Before the car can come to a halt, it explodes, with all the windows shattered by debris from the blast
Smoke billows out of the car. Friends of the driver have said that he became suspicious of the man he had on board
A dazed Mr Perry is seen opening the door around six seconds after the blast. He is lucky to be alive and his passenger is likely to be dead
The hero taxi driver runs from the vehicle and appears to point away from the car, warning people to stay away because of what has unfolded inside
By 10.59am the car was fully alight and Mr Perry had been carried away by a member of the hospital security team
Three men have been arrested as part of a terror probe after one person died and another was injured when a taxi pulled up and exploded (pictured) at Liverpool Women's Hospital seconds before the 11am Remembrance Sunday silence beganIf Mr Perry did lock the doors, today's terrifying video makes him look even braver, as he may have decided to stop the suspect entering the hospital's reception, even if it cost him his own life.
A friend of married father-of-two Mr Perry, 45, said that he believed that the cathedral was the target but traffic and road closures led to the passenger, who has not been formally identified, asking the driver to park at the nearby Liverpool Women's Hospital instead. If he locked him in, David appears to have stopped the man targeting the hospital as the clock struck 11am.
MI5 are said to be working with counter-terrorism police to confirm whether the Cathedral or the hospital was the true target and whether it was an Islamist attack. One theory police are probing is that the detonators on a potential bomb exploded but not the main charge. That would be a repeat of the failed 21/7 bombings three weeks after the 7/7 atrocity in 2005.
David Videcette, a former 7/7 counter-terror detective at Scotland Yard, said: 'Improvised Explosive Devices have various components, with each having to operate in the correct order, at a desired point, for there to be an explosion. Sometimes the components don't operate in order or when desired. It's possible what we see here is a detonator explosion that has failed to set off the main charge'.
The Prime Minister has praised the taxi driver caught up in the Liverpool explosion for acting with 'incredible presence of mind and bravery'.
Speaking at a medical centre in east London on Monday, Boris Johnson echoed the city's mayor Joanne Anderson in crediting the driver, named locally as David Perry, for his conduct when his car exploded on Remembrance Sunday.
Mr Johnson said: 'It does look as though the taxi driver in question did behave with incredible presence of mind and bravery.'
The investigation into the Remembrance Sunday explosion outside a Liverpool hospital is continuing.
A friend said: 'David noticed the man had some kind of light attached to his clothing and was messing around with it, it didn't look right at all. They couldn't get there, the roads were blocked off.
'The man changed his mind and asked to go to the city centre instead. But when they were going past the Women's Hospital he said to pull in there. It was just before 11. David noticed the man had some kind of light attached to his clothing and was messing around with it, it didn't look right at all.
'I don't know how he's done it with a split second's thought but David's jumped out and locked the car with this guy in the back. As soon as he did, it's gone off. If this guy got in the hospital God knows what could have happened. David's the luckiest man in Britain as well as the most heroic'.
Miraculously he suffered just minor cuts and bruises as well as damage to an ear drum. Last night he was discharged from hospital, insiders told MailOnline, while bomb squad including experts from the Army remained at the hospital.
Another friend added: 'David suffered cuts and bruises, a perforated ear drum and needed stitches in his ear. He'll be sore in the morning but he's home. I'm just glad no new babies were leaving at the time. For David to have probably been terrified and think so fast and then end up OK – it's amazing.'
New video and white smoke suggests the suicide bomb failed to explode due to a faulty detonator, says 7/7 cop
One theory police are probing is that the detonators on a potential bomb exploded but not the main charge.
That would be a repeat of the failed 21/7 bombings three weeks after the 7/7 atrocity in 2005.
David Videcette, a former 7/7 counter-terror detective at Scotland Yard, tweeted: 'Any type of explosion in a confined space is devastating, here it blows out the windows and sends the entire windscreen into the sky.
'This makes obvious that the seat of the blast is where the taxi passenger was, and not the front where the driver was. The white smoke indicates the explosion was fuelled by some type of explosive, the fire then takes hold and the smoke changes colour as it consumes the car.
'Improvised Explosive Devices have various components, with each having to operate in the correct order, at a desired point, for there to be an explosion. Sometimes the components don't operate in order or when desired.
'It's possible what we see here is a detonator explosion that has failed to set off the main charge'.
Nick Aldworth, a former counter-terrorism national co-ordinator, said the timing of the blast was 'significant' but it was 'very much open to debate at the moment about what has happened'.
Professor Clifford Jones, visiting professor at Chester University, told MailOnline: 'It seems to me that the heat, not the blast, was the lethal factor. That signifies that the bomb was composed not of a high explosive such as TNT but of a hydrocarbon substance, most likely gasoline.'
He told BBC Radio 4's Today Programme that from what he has seen there is 'very little blast damage' indicating that whatever was in the vehicle was 'low yield or didn't work properly, or possibly an incendiary'.
In response to the explosion, anti-terror police carried out raids across the city yesterday, arresting three men, aged 21, 26 and 29, under the Terrorism Act in the Kensington area of the city and evacuating dozens of homes in an operation that remained ongoing into Monday morning.
And last night huge numbers of armed police and a negotiation team swarmed around a large Victorian property in Rutland Avenue, Liverpool, amid reports of a person of interest inside.
Locals said armed police ordered residents to leave, saying the area 'wasn't safe' and were 'pointing guns at a house'. Residents of the street were given five minutes to grab some belongings before being evacuated. The operation appears to have ended at around 3.30am and the cordon remains in place this morning.
Despite the shock of staff and patients at Europe's largest maternity hospital as the vehicle burned yards from their front door, sources close to Mr Perry's family today told MailOnline how it was not thought to be the original target of the suspected bombing and that the driver's actions potentially saved dozens of lives.
Sources said the experienced cabbie picked up a fare who initially asked to be taken to Liverpool's Anglican Cathedral, half a mile from the hospital, where a Remembrance Sunday parade ended and a memorial event featuring thousands of servicemen, veterans and dignitaries was being held.
Another friend added: 'David suffered cuts and bruises, a perforated ear drum and needed stitches in his ear. He'll be sore in the morning but he's home. I'm just glad no new babies were leaving at the time. For David to have probably been terrified and think so fast and then end up OK – it's amazing.'
A fundraiser was last night set up by some of Mr Perry's Liverpool taxi driver colleagues to help him and his family recover from the ordeal. It had made £8,500 within hours.
Carl Bessant, whose partner had just had a baby at the hospital, said: 'She was feeding the baby when it happened. We heard a loud bang and looked out of the window.
'We saw the car on fire and someone jumped out... screaming, and there was someone inside the car. The hospital shut down, no-one in or out, so they said, but people were using the back entrance.'
As the police investigation developed three men aged 21, 26 and 29 were arrested as armed officers stormed a home in the inner-city Kensington area of Liverpool within 90 minutes of the explosion. They were being quizzed overnight.
One Kensington resident, 21, said: 'They grabbed two men and handcuffed them behind their backs.' Chris Lee, 31, said: 'They were bundled into the van. They had grabbed them from one of the houses. I had never seen them before.'
Sections of Boaler Street and Sutcliffe Street remained cordoned off, with a heavy police presence at the scene as inquiries continued today.
A similar police scene was in place at Rutland Avenue several miles away in Sefton Park, with a large number of armed officers seen in the neighbourhood.
Locals said police arrived from about 1pm as officers went on to guard a terraced property as the immediate surrounding area was cordoned off. Around 11:30pm, witnesses said roads were being evacuated, with taxis and at least two minibuses arriving at the scene to take residents to alternative accommodation.
Shortly before 10pm Ryan O'Neill tweeted that armed police 'pointing guns at the house' gave him five minutes to pack and leave Boaler Street with his partner and children.
Counter-terror negotiators were also called to the scene and facilities for residents were being set up in a nearby leisure centre.
Police early Monday said: 'A large cordon is in place on Rutland Avenue in Liverpool and a small number of addresses have been evacuated as a precaution.
'This is part of our ongoing enquiries into the car explosion outside the city's Women's hospital on Sunday morning.'
No description was available for the taxi passenger, who was declared dead at the scene.
Footage filmed from the hospital showed the car burning fiercely as voices can be heard gasping in shock. A shocked man is seen holding his head in his hands before being led away by hospital staff.
Locals described hearing a loud bang and seeing smoke rising from the hospital grounds just before 11am.
Father-of-two Matt Kerr, 52, said: 'I had just sat down to watch the Remembrance Sunday service as my family have served in the army when I heard a bang.
'I did a double take and just wondered what it was. I looked out and saw smoke, then there were police everywhere and helicopters. It's scary to think someone might have wanted to hurt women and children.'
Meanwhile around a mile from the Liverpool hospital, Rutland Avenue was cordoned off, with counter-terror officers and a 'negotiation team' at the scene. Locals said armed police, with dogs (pictured) ordered residents to leave, saying the area 'wasn't safe' and were 'pointing guns at a house'
Heavily armed police, one holding a breaching gun used to blast the hinges off doors, were seen at an address in Rutland Avenue near Liverpool's Sefton Park on Sunday night as officers investigated an explosion at the city's Women's Hospital at 10:59am
A police officer stands guard near the scene of a car blast at Liverpool Women's Hospital in Liverpool this morning
An investigator wearing a white forensics suit and carrying a jerry can and funnel was seen outside the hospital. Two fire engines were parked in the hospital car park near a blue forensics tent.
Police activity in Sutcliffe Street in the Kensington area of Liverpool, where three men, aged 21, 26 and 27, were arrested last night. They appear to be focussing on a property next to the Sir Walter Raleigh pub
Armed police were earlier pictured at Boaler Street, Kensington, and Rutland Avenue near Sefton Park (pictured today) as officers closed the roads with vehicles and cordons
Residents were ordered to remain inside while near neighbours were evacuated but some of the locals appeared to be inside the cordon this morning (pictured)
Footage posted online showed a car engulfed in bright orange flames outside the maternity hospital in Liverpool on Sunday,
The incident took place at Liverpool Women's Hospital as a remembrance service involving scores of military personnel, veterans and civic dignitaries, was happening at the city's Anglican Cathedral less than a mile away
The explosion took place at Liverpool Women's Hospital. A short walk from the Remembrance Day Service at Liverpool's Anglican Cathedral. There were three arrests at Sutcliffe Street in Kensington and a police operation at Rutland Avenue, where armed officers swarmed around a Victorian block of flats
Mother-of-one Emily Makefield, 32, said: 'I was walking nearby when I heard a bang and saw the smoke. It's terrifying this could happen at a women's hospital. It's shocking.'
Shop worker Sandra Hughes, 35, said: 'I saw people being turned away from hospital and police everywhere. It's terrifying to think someone might have wanted to attack a hospital.'
Social media was last night flooded with praise for the taxi driver's heroism.
Stephen Thomas said online: 'He is my mate, and he spotted the passenger acting suspicious. He's in hospital, luckily he escaped just before, but he did suffer some injuries.'
Kev Cuthbertson also wrote on Facebook: 'He is a hero, when he noticed the bomb he locked the scumbag in the car but took the brunt of the blast.'
Billy Darwin added: 'I've heard he has injuries, so on behalf of us all on here I wish this Liverpool hero a speedy recovery.
'He put his life on the line and nearly paid the ultimate price to save others – apparently not giving anything a second thought besides making sure he went above and beyond to keep the people of our city safe.'
Marie Davies said: 'He stopped by the women's hospital and locked the man in his cab after noticing the device.'
Phil Garrigan, chief fire officer of Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service, said the car fire was 'fully developed' when two appliances arrived shortly after 11am.
He told reporters at the scene: 'The operational crews extinguished the fire rapidly but as has been reiterated by the police chief constable, there was one fatality.
'Another individual had left the vehicle prior to the fire developing to the extent that it did. Our thoughts are with them and the families of those involved.'
The incident took place at Liverpool Women's Hospital as a remembrance service involving scores of military personnel, veterans and civic dignitaries, was happening at the city's Anglican Cathedral less than a mile away
The explosion took place at Liverpool Women's Hospital. A short walk from the Remembrance Day Service at Liverpool's Anglican Cathedral. There were three arrests at Sutcliffe Street in Kensington and a police operation at Rutland Avenue, where armed officers swarmed around a Victorian block of flats
Mother-of-one Emily Makefield, 32, said: 'I was walking nearby when I heard a bang and saw the smoke. It's terrifying this could happen at a women's hospital. It's shocking.'
Shop worker Sandra Hughes, 35, said: 'I saw people being turned away from hospital and police everywhere. It's terrifying to think someone might have wanted to attack a hospital.'
Social media was last night flooded with praise for the taxi driver's heroism.
Stephen Thomas said online: 'He is my mate, and he spotted the passenger acting suspicious. He's in hospital, luckily he escaped just before, but he did suffer some injuries.'
Kev Cuthbertson also wrote on Facebook: 'He is a hero, when he noticed the bomb he locked the scumbag in the car but took the brunt of the blast.'
Billy Darwin added: 'I've heard he has injuries, so on behalf of us all on here I wish this Liverpool hero a speedy recovery.
'He put his life on the line and nearly paid the ultimate price to save others – apparently not giving anything a second thought besides making sure he went above and beyond to keep the people of our city safe.'
Marie Davies said: 'He stopped by the women's hospital and locked the man in his cab after noticing the device.'
Phil Garrigan, chief fire officer of Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service, said the car fire was 'fully developed' when two appliances arrived shortly after 11am.
He told reporters at the scene: 'The operational crews extinguished the fire rapidly but as has been reiterated by the police chief constable, there was one fatality.
'Another individual had left the vehicle prior to the fire developing to the extent that it did. Our thoughts are with them and the families of those involved.'
Counter terrorism police launched an investigation into the explosion earlier today with raids carried out and a bomb squad (pictured) on site
A close friend of Mr Perry's told MailOnline the family believe the original target was the Remembrance service: 'The passenger asked David to go to the cathedral (pictured) so we believe that was the intended target. But they got stuck in heavy traffic so the passenger asked to go to the hospital instead'
Armed police were pictured outside two addresses on separate streets in Liverpool as officers closed the roads and residents were ordered to remain inside
Rutland Avenue near Sefton Park (pictured) and Boaler Street in Kensington were blocked by police vehicles and cordons, witnesses said
In a statement, North West Ambulance Service said: 'At 10.59am today we were called to reports of a car explosion [at Liverpool Women's Hospital]. We were on scene by 11.04am.
'One person has died and another person was treated for serious but not life-threatening injuries, before being taken to hospital.'
In a statement, the hospital, which was featured on the hit Channel 4 series One Born Every Minute and looks after around 50,000 patients a year, said: 'We are reviewing our patient activity for the next 24-48 hours and patients should wait to be contacted for updates about any planned appointments or other attendance at the hospital.
'Our staff are being permitted to leave and enter the hospital under the supervision of Merseyside Police.
'We would like to say thank you for the co-operation and support of our patients, visitors and staff who have been impacted by this incident, in particular those members of staff who were at the scene at the time of the incident.'
Women were told to avoid the hospital over the next 24 hours unless directly contacted by staff and told to attend their appointments.
Counter Terrorism Police are leading the investigation, supported by Merseyside Police, a spokesman for the force confirmed
Police and firefighters were spotted outside the Liverpool Women's Hospital, alongside a bomb disposal vehicle
Army personnel were pictured at the scene in Liverpool on Sunday evening after an explosion killed one and injured another person seconds before the nation fell silent for Remembrance Sunday
Police attended the incident, along with Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service and the North West Regional Ambulance Service
Pictures taken at the scene show smoke billowing into the sky, while a video picked up banging noises while firefighters arrived at the sceneIn a statement, Home Secretary Ms Patel said: 'I am being kept regularly updated on the awful incident at Liverpool Women's Hospital.
'Our police and emergency services are working hard to establish what happened and it is right they are given the time and space to do so.'
Mayor Anderson said: 'This morning's tragic incident at the Liverpool Women's Hospital has understandably caused a great deal of concern.
'Given the police investigation is ongoing, we need to refrain from speculation so that the facts can be established.
'The emergency services have been excellent in their handling of this incident and I offer them my sincere thanks. The response time to the scene was fantastically swift and the vehicle fire was out within minutes ensuring any other damage to property or harm to individuals was contained.
'This incident has clearly had a big impact on the hospital itself, especially the patients, their families and staff.'
She added: 'It is vitally important that everyone remains calm during this stressful situation and allow the police to conduct their investigation in the appropriate manner.'
Merseyside Police chief constable, Serena Kennedy, said: 'This has not been declared a terrorist incident at this stage although out of caution [counter-terrorism] detectives are leading as we try to understand the circumstances behind the explosion.
'So far we understand that the car involved was a taxi which pulled up at the hospital shortly before the explosion occurred. Work is still going on to establish what has happened and could take some time before we are in a position to confirm anything.
'We are keeping an open mind as to what caused the explosion, but given how it has happened - out of caution - counter terrorism police are leading the investigation supported by Merseyside Police. Our response is ongoing at the hospital and will be for some time. Cordons are in place, and there are some road closures.'
A spokesman for Merseyside Police told MailOnline it could take 'some time' to confirm what happened but that a major incident had been declared.
'We can confirm that at 10.59am today police were called to reports of a car explosion at the Women's Hospital in Liverpool city centre,' the statement said.
'Police immediately attended, along with Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service and the North West Regional Ambulance Service.
'Unfortunately, we can confirm that one person has died and another has been taken to hospital where he is being treated for his injuries, which thankfully are not life threatening.
'So far we understand that the car involved was a taxi which pulled up at the hospital shortly before the explosion occurred.
'Work is still going on to establish what has happened, and could take some time before we are in a position to confirm anything.'
The spokesman added: 'We are keeping an open mind as to what caused the explosion but given how it has happened, out of caution, Counter Terrorism Police are leading the investigation supported by Merseyside Police.
'The emergency services have well-rehearsed plans for dealing with major incidents. Our response is ongoing at the hospital and will be for some time. Cordons are in place, and there are some road closures.
'We would urge the public to remain calm (but vigilant).
'We would like to thank the public for their patience and their cooperation today which has already greatly assisted our policing response.
'We will issue updates as soon as we have more information.
'This has not been declared a terrorist incident at this stage although out of caution [counter-terror] detectives are leading as we try to understand the circumstances behind the explosion.'
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