Cambridge Circus: Worker crushed to death by 'telescopic urinal ...

27 Jan 2023
Telescopic urinal

A

man has died after being crushed by a telescopic urinal he was working on in central London.

Emergency services were scrambled to Charing Cross Road in the West End shortly after 1pm on Friday, where the man was “seriously injured” after becoming trapped underground.

He was finally rescued around 3.40pm after dozens of firefighters spent more than two-and-a-half hours trying to free him, eventually using a winch to prise the urinal open.

Around 4.40pm, Scotland Yard said: “We’re sorry to have to update that, despite the efforts of emergency services, the man who was critically injured in Cambridge Circus was pronounced dead at the scene.

“His next of kin has been informed.

“Cordons remain in place at the location.”

Members of the public have been asked to “please avoid the area if possible”.

A London Fire Brigade spokesperson said: “Firefighters were called to a person trapped on Charing Cross Road in central London.

“A man was trapped below street level underneath a hydraulic urinal. Firefighters worked with partner agencies and used a winch to free him.

“He was left in the care of London Ambulance Service and was sadly pronounced dead at the scene.”

Firefighters and emergency services attend an emergency outside the Palace Theatre in Cambridge Circus

/ Getty Images

The incident happened in Cambridge Circus - a junction connecting Charing Cross Road with Shaftesbury Avenue, in the heart of London’s hugely popular theatre district.

The urinal was located yards from the Palace Theatre, currently home to award-winning play Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.

Eyewitnesses reported seeing an air ambulance land in Trafalgar Square, while others described a “massive emergency response” in the area.

A winch was spotted at the scene around 3pm, and emergency workers used it to lift the urinal from the ground.

Around 25 firefighters in four fire engines formed part of a huge emergency response

/ Handout

A London Ambulance Service spokesperson said: “We were called today (27 January) at 1.05pm to reports of an incident on Shaftesbury Avenue, Charing Cross.

“We sent a number of resources to the scene, including an ambulance crew, members of our hazardous area response team (HART), members of our tactical response unit and a medic in a fast response car. We also dispatched London’s Air Ambulance.

“Sadly, despite the best efforts of our crews, a man was pronounced dead at the scene.”

Telescopic urinals were introduced in central London more than a decade ago, as an innovative way to provide people late-night revellers with places to urinate.

They are designed to drop down into the ground to resemble manhole covers by day, but by night rise from the ground to provide valuable extra cover as pubs begin to empty.

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