Woman and children injured in corrosive substance attack in London

A woman and her two young children have been taken to hospital after a man threw a suspected corrosive substance at them in south London, police have said.

A man was seen fleeing the scene and no arrests have been made.

Three other members of the public were also taken to hospital after the incident in Lessar Avenue near Clapham Common, at around 7.25pm on Wednesday.

Their injuries are thought to have been suffered as they came to the aid of the woman and her children.

The Metropolitan Police said three officers who responded to the incident were also injured.

Detective Superintendent Alexander Castle said the officers’ injuries were “minor”.

“While tests are ongoing to determine what the substance is, at this stage we believe it to be a corrosive substance,” he said.

“A man was seen fleeing the scene. We are drawing on resources from across the Met to apprehend this individual and work is ongoing to determine what has led to this awful incident.”