'Heroic' taxi driver praised for preventing Liverpool car explosion from becoming an 'awful disaster'

Three men have been arrested following the blast at Liverpool Women’s Hospital at 10.59am on Remembrance Sunday, around a mile away from the city’s cathedral where a large Remembrance service was taking place.

The men – aged 29, 26 and 21 – were detained in the nearby Kensington area of the city, while residents were evacuated as armed police were seen in Rutland Avenue, in the Sefton Park area, until the early hours of the morning.

The male passenger of the car was declared dead at the scene and is yet to be formally identified.

The driver, named locally as David Perry, was injured at the scene and remains in hospital in a stable condition.

Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, the city’s mayor Joanne Anderson said: ‘The taxi driver, in his heroic efforts, has managed to divert what could have been an absolutely awful disaster at the hospital.

‘Our thanks go to him and our emergency services, and authorities have worked through the night to divert anything further and we’ve all been on standby and in constant contact to provide any support that’s needed.’

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She added: ‘Well, we knew that the taxi driver had stood out and locked the doors, we knew that early on.’

However, she added it was important not to get drawn into speculation about the incident.

A friend of the driver claimed on Facebook he got out of his cab and locked the man in the vehicle after apparently noticing an explosive device.

Another said he was left with ‘pretty serious injuries” after taking the “brunt of the blast”, according to reports.

Conservative Party chairman Oliver Dowden, when asked about the driver’s reported actions, told Sky News: ‘Isn’t that the case, the contrast between the cowardice of terrorism attack and the bravery of ordinary Britons up and down the country who put other people’s lives before their own.

‘Clearly we’ll have to see exactly what happened but if that is the case it is another example of true bravery and courage.’

Counter-terrorism police have said they are keeping an open mind about the cause of the explosion and are working closely with Merseyside Police and, according to reports, MI5.

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

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