Boris pays tribute to ‘incredible’ taxi driver who ‘saved hospital from terrorist’

Boris Johnson has praised the ‘incredible presence of mind and bravery’ of a hero taxi driver involved in the Liverpool car explosion.

Investigators are still trying to piece together what happened but it’s believed David Perry may have locked a potential suicide bomber in his cab to prevent deaths.

Harrowing new footage revealed this morning showed the vehicle coming to a standstill outside Liverpool Women’s Hospital yesterday and bursting into flames after an explosion.

Mr Perry can be seen getting out of the car, remarkably relatively unscathed from the blast.

Three men – aged 29, 26, and 21 – were arrested under the Terrorism Act as armed police raided a number of homes last night.

Speaking at a medical centre in east London, the prime minister said: ‘This is an ongoing investigation so I can’t comment on the details or exactly what type of incident it was, what type of crime it may have been.

‘But it does look as though the taxi driver in question did behave with incredible presence of mind and bravery.

‘But I’ve got to say this is something that is an ongoing investigation. I think it would be premature to say much more than that.’

Mr Perry can be seen jumping out of his car just a few seconds after a sudden blast

It’s thought the dad-of-two may have saved dozens from a terror attack, which took place seconds before the 11am two-minute silence on Remembrance Sunday.

The male passenger, the only person to die in the suspected terror attack, is reported to have asked to be taken to Liverpool’s Service of Remembrance.

Mr Perry is said to have been discharged from hospital after suffering cuts, bruises and damage to his eardrum.

The incident has not been formally declared a terror incident but counter-terrorism officers are leading the investigation.

One line of inquiry is that the explosion failed and the detonators on a potential bomb exploded but not the main charge, it has been reported.

Merseyside Police chief constable Serena Kennedy told people living in the city to expect ‘an increased and visible police presence on the streets of Merseyside’.

Armed police officers have been involved in an ongoing counter-terrorism investigation taking place in Liverpool (Picture: PA)

The PM declined to comment extensively on an ongoing investigation but said it appeared the driver had acted with ‘bravery’

Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, 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.

‘Our thanks go to him and our emergency services, and authorities have worked through the night to divert anything further and we’ve all been on standby and in constant contact to provide any support that’s needed.’

The male passenger of the car, who was declared dead at the scene, is yet to be formally identified.

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’.

He told the BBC 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’.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

For more stories like this, check our news page.

from News – Metro https://ift.tt/3Fc1n6G