On Saturday 29th November, around 11:15 a.m. alarms sounded in the Intu Shopping Centre, Bromley. Stores such as Marks and Spencers, Debenhams and River Island lost an hour of trading due to the evacuation of the shopping centre. Hundreds of people inside the centre had to leave their shopping behind and evacuate, police were reported to be asking shoppers to move away from the building and were directing pedestrians towards Bromley South.
Jess (Waitress) in the Intu Shopping Centre says "At first we thought it was our own fire alarm, we thought someone had burnt some toast. But, then we saw everyone walking towards the exit."
Those who were working in Bromley at the time were never informed of what provoked the alarm.
But, what was the cause of this unexpected fire alarm? Rumours amongst the shoppers was that a suspicious vehicle had been parked near Boots, Widmore Road in Bromley, which then lead to the centres security team to contact the police. However, it turned out to be a false alarm. Leaving hundreds of shops down on their sales figures, during this critical sales period on Black Friday Weekend.
By Rosie Fortune, Young Reporter.
