Nine injured as boat hits Tower Bridge

Nine people have been injured when a sightseeing tour boat crashed into Tower Bridge.

The City Cruises vessel Millennium Diamond, with 130 people on board, struck the bridge at about 12:00 BST.

The boat continued to St Katharine Docks where paramedics treated the injured. Five people were taken to hospital, including a 64-year-old woman with pelvic and head injuries.

The bridge remained open to traffic despite the crash.

A man and a girl made their own way to get medical treatment and two other women were checked at the scene, but did not require further assistance, London Ambulance service said.

The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) said it understood that a woman suffered pelvic and head injuries when she fell down some steel steps.

Kevin Maynard, from the RNLI, said: "We understand the woman had been standing at the top of some steel steps when the collision happened and the impact knocked her down.

"We treated the woman by giving her oxygen and using blankets to keep her warm, as well as dressing her wound and placing her on a board to protect her spine."

The Met's marine policing unit also attended the scene. No arrests were made.

City Cruises, which operates the Millennium Diamond, said the vessel, carrying 126 passengers and four crew, had sustained "minor damage" and had been able to continue to St Katharine Dock.

In a statement, City Cruises said the river authorities were currently in attendance.

It added: "There have been a number of injuries reported, including crew who were immediately assessed and are being transferred to local hospitals."

The company added the boat had been inspected and returned to the firm's London headquarters.