8-year-old girl killed, 15 others injured as car crashes into primary school in London

An eight-year-old girl was killed and 15 others injured after a woman crashed her car into a primary school in Wimbledon, south-west London, on Thursday morning.

According to local media reports, the girls were "having a tea party" at the time when a black Land Rover smashed through the gates of the school.

Police have arrested the woman, who is said to be in her 40s, on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving.

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The incident took place around 9.30 am following which the Metropolitan Police were called in about the car crashing into the school building on Camp Road.

Later, paramedics from the London Ambulance Service and London's Air Ambulance were dispatched to attend to the injured girls aged 4 to 11.

Firefighters were also at the scene, removing safety railings to help emergency services reach the site.

"This is a very difficult time for everyone here at the school and across the wider community,” detective chief superintendent for the police Clair Kelland said in a news conference.

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"We would ask people not to speculate while we work to understand the full circumstances of what has happened during this tragic incident.

"Our officers have already spoken to a number of witnesses and have viewed the CCTV."

Terrorism ruled out

The Metropolitan Police, in a statement, said that the crash incident, which took place about a kilometre from wherethe Wimbledon tennis tournamentwas being held, won’t be treated as terrorism-related.

The police have cordoned off surrounding streets and asked the public to avoid the area to ease access to emergency services.

Chair of the school's board of governors, John Tucker, told the news conference: "The school community is profoundly affected by this tragedy and, at the moment, we're not in a position to make any further comment."

MP for Wimbledon Stephen Hammond told the BBC that the location was "really quite remote", adding it is situated roughly a mile from Wimbledon village and on the way to several nearby golf clubs.

"It's extremely distressing and extremely concerning," he said, speaking earlier before police had announced the girl's death.

"The size of the response tells you how serious the incident is and there are a number of casualties, and I understand that a number of those are being treated as critical," he said, adding it had been the last day of term at the school.

In a tweet, Home Secretary Suella Braverman said she was "saddened to hear about the tragic incident at the school in Wimbledon this morning", adding, "My thoughts are with everyone affected.”

(With inputs from agencies)

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