TWO people have been shot in Woolwich, south east London, after armed police were called to an incident in which a man wearing a Help for Heroes t-shirt was apparently attacked with a machete-style knife and dumped in the street.

Officers were called to John Wilson Street in Woolwich, south east London, at around 2.20pm today and the immediate area was shut down.

On its Twitter account, the Metropolitan Police helicopter team called the incident "serious".

A Scotland Yard spokesman said: "Officers have responded to an incident in John Wilson Street at 2.20pm today.

"We believe at this stage officers were called to reports of an assault."

London Air Ambulance confirmed that one patient was airlifted from the scene, while another was taken away by road ambulance.

The service would not confirm the nature of their injuries or where they were being taken.

Woolwich and Greenwich MP Nick Raynsford said it was his understanding that one person, a serving soldier, was dead and the two alleged suspects were in a serious condition in hospital.

He said he had spoken to both borough commander Richard Wood and Lieutenant Colonel Bob Christopher at Woolwich Barracks.

Mr Raynsford said: "The incident occurred early afternoon. One individual is dead, two others are seriously injured and in hospital.
"The circumstances causing the incident are not yet clear. It's been suggested it was the product of a road traffic accident, but that's pure speculation.

"I'll be talking to everyone who is involved, we will be trying to do everything possible to try and ensure calm in the area. People will be very, very shocked.
"We think a serving soldier was the victim. We don't know the circumstances surrounding the incident.
"We do know a number of weapons have been seized. They include a gun, various knives, and a machete, apparently.
"The police clearly had to take action in order to try and arrest these individuals."

Cheryl Spruce, who lives near the incident, told Sky News that a nearby school was put into lockdown.
She said: "The police were telling us to take an alternative route to get to school.
"There were police everywhere. There were 30 to 40 police officers.
"Police officers in each road were stopping people from walking anywhere. It's mayhem out there at the moment."