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  "path": "/2026/06/08/red-flares-wreak-fiery-carnage-leaving-londoners-feeling-like-living-warzone-28698373/",
  "publishedAt": "2026-06-08T20:32:15.000Z",
  "site": "https://metro.co.uk",
  "tags": [
    "News",
    "UK",
    "Boat Race",
    "London",
    "London Fire Brigade",
    "supports HTML5\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tvideo",
    "River Thames",
    "London Tube strikes – full list of affected lines and exact time they will start",
    "Cenk Uygur and Hasan Piker banned from visiting UK for SXSW hours before festival kick-off",
    "London’s ‘most luxurious’ secret garden is reopening — with strict rule for visitors",
    "London news hub",
    "Add Metro as a Preferred Source on Google\nAdd as preferred source"
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  "textContent": "To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tvideo\n\nUp Next\n\nPrevious Page\n\nNext Page\n\nRed sky at night? Run and hide. Londoners have described the carnage after a ‘dangerous’ shower of red flares fell on the capital.\n\nHouseboats in a Wapping shipyard caught fire as boaters slept after the red flares descended on parachutes at around 10.30pm on Sunday.\n\nIn one video, groups of men can be heard singing ‘Championes, Ole Ole Ole’ as the flares are sent up.\n\nIt is thought they were on a housing development on the south side of the River Thames. It is unclear who fired the projectiles. There have been no arrests.\n\n‘We were all very lucky that none of them landed on petrol tanks’ (Picture: Gavin Starks)\n\nCars were damaged, and a football pitch burned as heroic Londoners rushed to put out the fires themselves.\n\nIt is thought they could be magnesium flares which burn at over 600C and can’t be put out with water.\n\nApoorv Srivastava watched the carnage unfold from his window in Wapping.\n\nHe told **Metro:** ‘To be honest it looked like a warzone in the night. It was completely crazy. Some boats caught fire on the north side of Hermitage moorings.\n\nDozens of flares lit up the London sky (Picture: Apoorv Srivastava)\n\n‘It was clear that these were not fireworks but flares as these are designed to not extinguish even in water so they can be used by emergency crews in the sea.\n\n‘They fell in the river and did not immediately extinguish either.\n\nHe added: ‘I was scared and was standing ready so that if it falls into my building’s garden – I could put it out.\n\n##  Latest London news\n\n  * London Tube strikes – full list of affected lines and exact time they will start\n  * Cenk Uygur and Hasan Piker banned from visiting UK for SXSW hours before festival kick-off\n  * London’s ‘most luxurious’ secret garden is reopening — with strict rule for visitors\n\n\n\n_**To get the latest news from the capital, visit Metro's** London news hub._\n\n‘You can see them being fired at an angle towards Wapping otherwise they would be fired straight up in the air.’\n\n‘Whoever they were – it was pretty irresponsible for the time of night, and proximity to properties, cars, boats, as well as shrub land.\n\n‘We could assume no accidents to humans, but there is property damage, and what could have been is unthinkable.’\n\nHermitage Moorings, a community of houseboats, was bombarded by the flares.\n\nA spokesman told **Metro** : ‘We had three fires on our boats while many had gone to sleep.\n\n‘Our local hero was a neighbour boat dweller Thomas Zatorski who immediately extinguished all the fires.\n\n‘Otherwise, there could have been risks to lives as the fires were severe.’\n\nHe added: ‘We were all very lucky that none of them landed on petrol tanks that accompany the outboard engines on the smaller boats.’\n\nThe next day damage was seen on cars and burn marks left at John Orwell football pitch.\n\nFlares lit up the London sky (Picture: Apoorv Srivastava)\n\nThe flares descended slowly on parachutes (Picture: Apoorv Srivastava)\n\nAn LFB spokesperson told **Metro:** ‘We did receive a few calls at about half 10 last night to reports of flares being set off with further calls stating fires.\n\n‘Crews did attend and searched the area but they did not locate any fires and no firefighting was required. We received no further related calls afterwards.’\n\nHe added: ‘The LFB urges people to use pyrotechnics responsibly and they should always be used well away from buildings, trees and other flammable materials.’\n\nComment now Comments \nAdd Metro as a Preferred Source on Google\nAdd as preferred source\n",
  "title": "Red flares wreak fiery carnage leaving Londoners feeling like they are living in a ‘warzone’"
}