Mum screamed ‘I can’t see’ after having ‘corrosive’ liquid thrown in her face

A mother and her two children are among nine people injured in an incident involving a ‘corrosive substance’ in Clapham, south London.

Among the injured after those believed to have come to their aid, and three Met police officers who responded to initial reports at around 7.25pm.

The mum was crying ‘I can’t see, I can’t see’ as an eyewitness tried to help her, the BBC reports, as he described the scene as ‘quite horrific’.

London Fire Brigade (LFB) said the pair of children and their mother were given ‘immediate emergency care’ at the scene on Lessar Avenue, directly beside Clapham Common.

A couple who live on the street say they ran outside after hearing a cry for help and a car crashing.

The man said: ‘We came outside and saw this guy and he took a girl out of the car and he slammed her to the ground twice.

‘I chased him half way down the road, but I was in slippers so didn’t get very far.

‘As I came back, that’s when I saw the woman who had been attacked, so I ran inside to get some water and just sprayed her down with water.’

The Met’s Detective Superintendent Alexander Castle confirmed the woman and children had been taken to hospital, along with the three adults who are thought to have come to their aid.

The officers who responded to the incident were also taken to hospital with what are believed to be minor injuries.

Another witness who tried to wash the chemical off the woman’s face told Sky News: ‘It was horrific. First a man grabbed a kid – a girl aged two or three from a white car.

‘He threw her onto the floor – twice! It was the worst thing I’ve ever seen.

‘I then ran into my house, grabbed a water bottle and threw water on her eyes. Her lips were black. Her skin looked burnt.’ 

‘The man then threw something at the woman. She was screaming, “my eyes! My eyes!”

Det Supt Castle added: ‘While tests are ongoing to determine what the substance is, at this stage we believe it to be a corrosive substance.’

Officers are searching for a man seen fleeing the scene, assisted by a police helicopter.

London Ambulance service said five of those injured in the incident had been taken to a major trauma centre, with three others taken to a local hospital.

A ninth patient was discharged at the scene.

Marina Ahmad, a member of the London Assembly for Lambeth and Southwark, described the incident as a ‘traffic collision’ involving ‘a man assaulting occupants in a car and throwing acid’.

LFB said in a statement: ‘The Brigade was called at 7.35pm and the incident was over for firefighters by 9.21pm.

‘Two fire engines from Clapham and Battersea fire stations attended the scene.’

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at [email protected].

For more stories like this, check our news page.

MORE : Lego celebrates 100 years of the Red Telephone Box with special London set

MORE : Sarah Jessica Parker is really quite obsessed with the London Underground

MORE : Designs unveiled for London’s newest skyscraper

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.