A 16-year-old boy has gone missing while swimming in a popular London pond.
Emergency services launched an urgent search after the teenager "got into difficulty" in the water at Beckenham Place Park in Lewisham, in the capital's southeast, shortly after 3pm today.
The Metropolitan Police confirmed it was called to the scene alongside paramedics after the boy was reported to be "missing in the water" at the busy park.
A major search operation is now underway as authorities work to locate the missing teenager.
Earlier, the incident prompted a full evacuation of the park to allow emergency services to conduct their search effectively.
One of those who said they had been "ushered out" wrote on social media: "Something very serious is taking place, with much of the park being evacuated.
"Scores of police, vans, grey vans, unmarked cars, fire engines, helicopters buzzing for about an hour... I've just left after being ushered out."
London Ambulance Service said they were alerted at 3.02pm "to reports of a person in the water" and dispatched multiple resources to the scene.
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A spokesman for the service confirmed they sent an ambulance crew, an incident response officer and members of their hazardous area response team to the scene.
"We are still at the scene working alongside our emergency services partners," the spokesman added.
Meanwhile, the Metropolitan Police said that emergency services were "co-ordinating a search" for the missing teenager.
Emergency response teams were still at the location as the search operation continues into the evening.
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The boy's next-of-kin has been informed about the incident, according to police, while specialist officers are currently providing support to the family.
Lewisham Council said this afternoon that they were "aware of a serious incident at Beckenham Place Park" - around two hours after emergency services were first called to the scene.
The pond at Beckenham Place Park is a known swimming location during warmer weather - and with temperatures having peaked at nearly 20C around 3pm, the park will likely have been busy.
Emergency services have not indicated how long the search operation is expected to continue.
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Emergency services launched an urgent search after the teenager "got into difficulty" in the water at Beckenham Place Park in Lewisham, in the capital's southeast, shortly after 3pm today.
The Metropolitan Police confirmed it was called to the scene alongside paramedics after the boy was reported to be "missing in the water" at the busy park.
A major search operation is now underway as authorities work to locate the missing teenager.
Earlier, the incident prompted a full evacuation of the park to allow emergency services to conduct their search effectively.
One of those who said they had been "ushered out" wrote on social media: "Something very serious is taking place, with much of the park being evacuated.
"Scores of police, vans, grey vans, unmarked cars, fire engines, helicopters buzzing for about an hour... I've just left after being ushered out."
London Ambulance Service said they were alerted at 3.02pm "to reports of a person in the water" and dispatched multiple resources to the scene.
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A spokesman for the service confirmed they sent an ambulance crew, an incident response officer and members of their hazardous area response team to the scene.
"We are still at the scene working alongside our emergency services partners," the spokesman added.
Meanwhile, the Metropolitan Police said that emergency services were "co-ordinating a search" for the missing teenager.
Emergency response teams were still at the location as the search operation continues into the evening.
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The boy's next-of-kin has been informed about the incident, according to police, while specialist officers are currently providing support to the family.
Lewisham Council said this afternoon that they were "aware of a serious incident at Beckenham Place Park" - around two hours after emergency services were first called to the scene.
The pond at Beckenham Place Park is a known swimming location during warmer weather - and with temperatures having peaked at nearly 20C around 3pm, the park will likely have been busy.
Emergency services have not indicated how long the search operation is expected to continue.
Find Out More...