Major Incident?

[Penguin68]

I've just seen 5 police vans, the sort that the SPG or whatever they are now called use, head south down Underhill on blues and twos towards the South Circular. Would hold 40 officers if fully loaded. Anyone know what's up? 

[HeadNun]

Yes, I saw an incident van too, earlier, around 3.30 - never seen one before. It did look as if it was on its way to something major. 

[Penguin68]

And another one, number 6, has just gone passed as well! 

I presume that the LTNs are blocking them from a more useful route. Or the surrounding road works. 

[malumbu]

You've conflated a major incident with LTNs?  That's machavallian.  I'm impressed 😵‍💫

At the Finches fire last week there were a lot of emergency vehicles  Including the SPG.  But no cops with weapons (I used to work near where the SPG were stationed).  When there are major incidents police from other boroughs are called in with such vehicles.  I can't remember the name of the vehicles bringing cops in.

 

 

[Dogkennelhillbilly]

4 hours ago, Penguin68 said:

I presume that the LTNs are blocking them from a more useful route. 

Definitely a strong entry for "shoehorn of the year". 🤣

[Cyclemonkey]

There were large amounts of police and a couple of TSG vans at London Bridge station last night at a similar time.  Usually that means some sort of Millwall related football clash, but I didn't hang around to find out. 

[Penguin68]

The way they were heading, towards the East bound South Circular, and on lights and sirens, wouldn't I think suggest that. I have lived on Underhill for close to 40 years, but it has not formed part of an emergency route until very recently, nor have we had rush hour queues until the LTN introduction. Despite the fact that it is a bus route much of it is residential and doesn't support speeding traffic safely. It's not a route I would chose to put 5 speeding police vans in convoy unless there was no alternative in accessing the A205. Which there now mainly isn't. 

[David Peckham]

Palace were at home last night, kicked off at 19.45.

The timing sounds about right.

[Sephiroth]

10 hours ago, Dogkennelhillbilly said:

Definitely a strong entry for "shoehorn of the year". 🤣

I blame Brexit 

[Penguin68]

1 hour ago, David Peckham said:

Palace were at home last night, kicked off at 19.45

They wouldn't have needed to go through Underhill on sirens and lights at four in the afternoon for a seven forty five kick-off in a 5 van convoy. With a sixth van following about 5 minutes later again on siren and lights. 

[David Peckham]

My apologies. The timing of your original post suggested it was after 6pm, which would fit with them herding away supporters onto the train at London Bridge and trying to get to Selhurst station to escort them to the ground.

 

 

Edited October 24 by David Peckham

[Angelina]

could be related to the three arrests yesterday.

 

Without knowing, it is just speculation

 

"All three men were arrested on suspicion of assisting a foreign intelligence service, contrary to section 3 of the National Security Act (NSA), 2023 and they were taken to a police station in London." (Met News)

[Penguin68]

1 hour ago, David Peckham said:

My apologies

No problems... That number of vans would be consistent with football issues. And if it had just been one vehicle I might have considered the timing was consistent with rushing to get back for refs - when I worked in the City the 4.00pm siren rush to Wood St nick was a regular occurrence. But 5 in convoy?! 

[teddyboy23]

18 hours ago, Penguin68 said:

I've just seen 5 police vans, the sort that the SPG or whatever they are now called use, head south down Underhill on blues and twos towards the South Circular. Would hold 40 officers if fully loaded. Anyone know what's up? 

Doughnuts on sale

[David Peckham]

40 minutes ago, Penguin68 said:

No problems... That number of vans would be consistent with football issues. And if it had just been one vehicle I might have considered the timing was consistent with rushing to get back for refs - when I worked in the City the 4.00pm siren rush to Wood St nick was a regular occurrence. But 5 in convoy?! 

It was a bit of a jump by me from Cyclemonkey seeing a similar presence at London Bridge.

Larnaca wouldn't have brought a huge amount of fans, but it was the first time Palace have hosted a competitive European tie. There's the issue of Northern Cyprus and heightened media interest around footy because of the Villa Maccabi game at the moment, so that may have had a bearing on the scale of the operation.

It does seem unlikely if it was at four o'clock, though.

[ianr]

> could be related to the three arrests yesterday.

> Without knowing, it is just speculation

Perhaps they'd been warned of a Spetznaz squad  planning to rescue them and were taking them to Croydon nick for security's sake.

https://news.met.police.uk/news/three-arrested-in-london-under-the-national-security-act-502493

[Sue]

On a training practice?

[malumbu]

Perhaps a TV set.  I cycled around the Horniman area a few years ago and the place was swarming with Rozzers.  Look out for the tell tale mobile caterers.  Lighting is another clue if it is at night.

You'll also get the mobile caterers if a police exercise, but more greasy spoon than smashed avocado,  That is from real experience BTW

[Penguin68]

They shot part of an episode of the Bill around Camberwell Old Cemetery, a film set was nothing like this, for a start there were no cameras! Or direction, or site vehicles, or re-takes. 

[Rockets]

It may also have been a "regroup" where the TSG move to another location to muster in case they are needed....a "regroup" may also be used when they are, ahem, hungry and need to get to a feeding station. The old East Dulwich police station used to be a feeding and watering hole and was often used as such and mobile units would rush there at feeding time!

[alice]

Why is everyone so reluctant to accept that there was an incident which needed five vans?  

[Dogkennelhillbilly]

On 24/10/2025 at 08:48, Sephiroth said:

I blame Brexit 

Decimal currency led to this.

[Sue]

2 hours ago, alice said:

Why is everyone so reluctant to accept that there was an incident which needed five vans?  

Maybe because you would have thought such an incident  would have been publicised, or  someone on here would know what it was?

On the face of it it seems odd, especially if they were on blues and twos, if there was no serious  reason for it.

Unless, as I said, it was some kind of training exercise?

[Penguin68]

Another TSG van on blues and twos just shot down Underhill, passing my house at 15:30 hrs. Which suggests this residential street is now an accepted emergency route to the South Circular. Which it never used to be. And which I'm guessing reflects a change in road usage which is likely to have been influenced by other recent road changes locally. But I'm sure life is much quieter now in other roads, so lucky them. But their quietness shouldn't be seen, in my view, as being a universal benefit to the area. 

[Tipsyleprachauns]

It means nothing of the sort Penguin. It simply means that wherever that TSG van was when they got a call to somewhere else, that road was the most efficient and quickest way to get from where they were to where they needed to be. Said as someone who drives frequently on blue lights in this area and has had absolutely no issues caused by any changes in road layouts. I have elsewhere, but not in this patch.