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Arson suspected after double-decker bus catches fire in Lewisham

The fire erupted on the top deck of the number 208 bus, sending a plume of black smoke into the sky

Samuel Osborne
Friday 25 March 2016 23:56 GMT
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Video showing the blaze was shared on Twitter
Video showing the blaze was shared on Twitter (Aslan Parcasi/Twitter)

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A double-decker bus caught fire in a south London street in what police are treating as a suspected arson attack.

Fire crews were called to Loampit Vale, near Lewisham station, at 6.03pm and had the blaze under control by 6.20pm.

The fire erupted on the top deck of the number 208 bus, sending a plume of black smoke into the sky.

Video showing the blaze was shared on Twitter.

No one is believed to have been injured.

The road was reopened around 20 minutes later, though TfL warned there could be continued delays.

Police said they were treating the fire as a possible arson attack.

Writing on their official Twitter accout, Lewisham police said: "Although it looked dramatic, it was a simple fire and is being dealth with as a suspected arson."

A spokesman for Scotland Yard told the Evening Standard: "We await information from London Fire Brigade fire investigators as to whether the fire is suspicious."

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