A former Marlborough Express journalist in London has described deserted streets and says people are worried about leaving their homes as mobs take over areas of the British capital.
Tony Skinner lives close to Brixton, Streatham and Clapham – all of which have seen looting and rioting.
"Last night the police chopper was flying overhead and sirens were frequent but the streets were weirdly quiet – no cars or people on the street, which is really unusual.
"[The unrest] feels pretty close to home," he said.
"I used to go through Croydon every day when I worked south of London, so the massive fires down there were a shock as well."
People in London were talking about what would happen next and were worried about whether it would be safe to go out, he said.
Longer-term effects, such as planned police cuts and the Olympics, were also being talked about, he said.
The spree of arson, looting and violence moved into a third night yesterday, spreading to new suburbs, including Hackney, Croydon, Peckham, Lewisham, Clapham and Ealing. There has also been rioting in other cities.
Blenheim woman Jessica Yarrall lives in Tottenham where she works as a social worker.
She has been sent home from work before 4pm each day since the riots for her safety.
The only sound she could hear across the city when she spoke to the Express this morning was sirens, she said.
"Usually there's lots of noise like traffic and people, but everything's really silent – it's really eerie," she said.
"People are most concerned about the fires."
A strong police presence was clearly visible as the metropolitan police boosted numbers from about 6000 to 16,000, she said.
"But I saw one guy walking down the street the other day with a huge TV on his back – people are just openly (looting) because they know the police can't be everywhere."
The violence was not orchestrated and was being randomly carried out by children as young as 12, she said.
Patrick O'Regan from Murchison, who lives in Parsons Green, said his workplace in the city was empty by 3pm as people headed home early yesterday. Trains did not stop at all Underground stations, to avoid those where there might be trouble. Some pubs had signs out saying there was no liquor inside, and stores were closed even in areas where there had been no trouble. "I think most people are keeping inside."
Mr O'Regan said he had not expected the violence to continue after the initial riot at Tottenham, but in retrospect he could see how it could happen.
"They're just young kids. You look at them and it's a tinderbox because youth unemployment is so high."
New Zealanders he knew were not talking about coming home or leaving London, he said.
A woman from Richmond, near Nelson, who travelled from her Hertfordshire home into London yesterday said parts of the city were unrecognisable and looked "like a war zone".
Dianne Sutherland, an IT analyst who has lived in Britain for 23 years, said that as she travelled into London on the train, "for miles around you could see heavy black smoke billowing from the buildings that were still being tackled by the fire service".
She said the mood in the city was sombre, with fewer people around and office and shop workers heading home by 3pm across Britain.
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- The Marlborough Express Last updated 13:00 10/08/2011
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