London has endured one of its darkest weekends of the year, with four people losing their lives in separate incidents across the capital.
Between the early hours of Friday and late on Sunday, emergency crews were called to scenes in North Kensington, Holloway, Wood Green and Enfield: a hit-and-run now being treated as murder, a fatal collision between a bus and a motorbike, a devastating house fire, and a crash victim who finally lost his fight for life in hospital days after the collision.
Key facts: four deaths in one weekend
- North Pole Road, North Kensington – Friday 25 September, around 1.20am. A 24-year-old e-bike rider was killed in a hit-and-run. The Metropolitan Police is treating the death as murder.
- Tollington Road, Holloway – Friday 25 September, around 11.30am. A motorcyclist believed to be in his 30s died after a crash involving a bus.
- Granville Road, Wood Green – Saturday 26 September, 10.15pm. A man died in a fire that gutted a two-storey terraced house.
- Chase Side, Enfield – the crash happened on Saturday 20 September; on Sunday 27 September the Met confirmed a 48-year-old passenger had died in hospital.
Cyclist chased by moped before fatal hit-and-run
The weekend’s first fatality came in the early hours of Friday, when a 24-year-old man riding an e-bike was found seriously injured on North Pole Road in North Kensington. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Detectives are investigating the death as murder. The Metropolitan Police says CCTV enquiries indicate a moped had been pursuing the e-bike in the moments before the crash, and the rider failed to stop. You can read our full report on the North Pole Road investigation.
Motorcyclist killed in Holloway bus crash
Hours later, at around 11.30am on Friday, officers were called to Tollington Road in Holloway after a collision between a bus and a motorbike.
The rider, a man believed to be in his 30s, was found unconscious in the road. Despite the efforts of paramedics and other emergency services at the scene, he was pronounced dead a short time later.
Man dies as blaze rips through Wood Green home
On Saturday night, firefighters were called to Granville Road in Wood Green at 10.15pm after a fire broke out in a two-storey terraced house. A woman managed to get out before crews arrived, but a man lost his life at the scene.
The flames destroyed the entire first floor and half of the roof. Six fire engines and around 40 firefighters tackled the blaze, which was brought under control by 11.30pm. The cause is now being investigated by the London Fire Brigade and the Metropolitan Police. Our full story on the Granville Road fire has more detail.
Enfield crash victim dies in hospital a week on
The fourth death was confirmed on Sunday, when the Met announced that a 48-year-old man had died in hospital following a crash on Chase Side in Enfield the previous Saturday. He had been a passenger in one of the vehicles involved in the collision with a pedestrian.
Another passenger, aged 31, remains in hospital in a life-threatening condition.
A 32-year-old woman was arrested on suspicion of causing serious injury by dangerous driving and of driving with a specified controlled drug above the prescribed limit. She was further arrested during interview on suspicion of failing to stop, and has since been released on bail while enquiries continue. More on the Enfield collision and the police witness appeal.
A weekend of wider disorder
Alongside the four deaths, officers across London dealt with a string of violent disturbances over the same 48 hours.
- Appleby Street, Hackney (Friday, 9am): police were called to a brawl involving a group of men. A Met spokesperson said a man was believed to have been stabbed after witnesses reported seeing a knife – but the victim had left the scene before officers arrived.
- Cowley Recreation Ground, Uxbridge (Friday, 2.40pm): a man in his 50s was found with stab wounds consistent with a machete following a fight, according to the Met. His injuries were described as neither life-threatening nor life-changing. Two boys, aged 15 and 17, were arrested on suspicion of attempted robbery, grievous bodily harm and possession of an offensive weapon.
- Essex Road, Islington (Saturday morning): officers cordoned off the road after reports of a fight near a pub. The group had dispersed by the time police arrived, but CCTV analysis led to the arrest of a 19-year-old man on suspicion of affray and possession of an offensive weapon. He was taken to hospital with injuries later assessed as neither life-threatening nor life-changing.
- Herbert Road, Woolwich (Saturday, 5.45pm): officers came across a man with injuries, gave him first aid and took him to hospital, where he was treated for non-life-changing injuries. A 24-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of grievous bodily harm and possession of an offensive weapon and remains in custody. Full details of the Woolwich arrest.
Investigations continue
The Metropolitan Police is leading the murder investigation into the North Kensington hit-and-run, while detectives and the London Fire Brigade work to establish the cause of the Wood Green blaze.
Enquiries into each of the weekend’s deaths are continuing.
