Shoppers fled in panic after a taxi cab mounted a pavement near London’s bustling Covent Garden on Wednesday afternoon, hitting a number of people.

Photographs showed what appeared to be people lying on the pavement in front of the black cab.

Dozens of police, ambulance and fire vehicles attended the scene as shoppers fled from the area.

Ed Hoppitt , who witnessed the incident, wrote on Twitter: “Just came within meters of being hit by a vehicle that mounted the pavement and ploughed into people.

“People down under taxi.”

Paramedics were seen carrying two people on stretchers into ambulances.

A barrister at the Aubaune cafe said that they had been told the driver of a reported black cab had "lost control".

He added that a number of people are believed to have been hit, adding that people ran from the scene "screaming and panicking".

Scotland Yard said officers were called just after 5pm to reports of a taxi hitting pedestrians in Southampton Street.

There were initially fears the incident may have been a deliberate attack, but shortly police said it was not terror related.