Croydon hospital closed off due to possible hazardous substance

Parts of Croydon University Hospital were closed off after a woman was found with a "possible hazardous substance", according to the Metropolitan Police.

The Met was called at 03:46 BST by London Ambulance Service (LAS) to a report of a woman ingesting poison in Thornton Heath, south London.

It said she was taken to Croydon University Hospital and found to be in possession of a substance.

LAS and the Met say four of their staff have been exposed to the substance.

The Met added that two of its staff "remain under observation".

In a statement, the Met said the London Fire Brigade (LFB) also attended the hospital, adding "safety cordons and closures were established while specialist officers examined the item and safety procedures were enacted".

A spokesperson from LFB said crews from Norbury and Lewisham fire stations were called to the scene at 05:20.

They said firefighters "conducted a sweep of the premises to identify elevated readings of chemical substances" and "safely contained and removed a chemical from the scene".

A London Ambulance Service spokesperson said after taking the woman to hospital it sent additional ambulance crews, an incident response officer and members of its hazardous area response team to the scene.

"Two members of staff who initially responded to the patient were treated for exposure to harmful chemicals and are being monitored as a precaution," they said.

Ambulances and emergency vehicles were given access to the hospital throughout the incident response and earlier road closures have been lifted, the Met said.

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