A 69-year-old protester climbed onto the top of a giant crane at a construction site in Nine Elms and spent the night after unfurling a Palestinian flag when police tried to persuade him.
Metropolitan Police spent Tuesday (June 15) speaking to the man after climbing 100 meters to the top of the crane between Battersea Power Station and the Sky Pool just before 4 a.m.
On Wednesday morning, the Met confirmed they were still trying to speak to the man and the road closures remained in place.
The crane is stationed at One Nine Elms, a £ 1 billion project that will build a 200 meter high luxury skyscraper.
The officers who tried to contact him were unable to. He apparently plans to continue the protest with a view of the Vauxhall Bridge “for days,” according to a local public.
A pro-Palestinian activist tweeted that the protester was 69 years old and had “no safety net” in a “death defying, daring act of solidarity for Palestine”.
A Met spokesman said, “Our priority is the man’s safety and the officers are trying to speak to him. So far he has not communicated with any of the officers on site. “
The police remain on the scene and the London Fire Brigade and London Ambulance Service have been made aware of the ongoing incident.
Although several streets in the area were originally closed, only Nine Elms Lane between the US Embassy and Wandsworth Road is now closed to the south.
Motorists were asked to find an alternative route.
Do you know anything about the incident? Contact ben.kempton@reachplc.com
