to be Caucasian, is known to police

A man has driven a burning car filled with gas cylinders into a Sydney police station carpark on Thursday night in an attempted car bomb attack.

The man, said to be in his 60s and of Caucasian appearance, set himself and the interior of the car on fire, before driving it into roller doors of the underground carpark of Merrylands police station in western Sydney.

He is said to have initially tried to drive the white Hyundai Getz into the front of the police station, and claimed he had a bomb.

The station had been recently fortified after receiving threats including letters threatening attacks on ‘non-Muslims’ and pictures of ISIS fighters holding severed heads.

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A man has driven a car (pictured) filled with gas bottles into a Sydney police station carpark on Thursday night in an attempted terror attack

The man, said to be in his 60s and of Caucasian appearance, set himself and the interior of the car on fire (pictured), before driving it into the roller doors of the underground carpark of Merrylands police station

He is said to have initially tried to drive into the front of the police station (pictured), and claimed he had a bomb

TIMELINE OF EVENTS IN THE ATTACK 7pm: Police notice a car sitting in the driveway of the Merrylands police station and approached the car The driver, in his 60s, did not speak to officers, but ignited himself and the interior of the car He then drove the car down the driveway into roller doors leading to police carpark Officers put out the flames and dragged the man out of the car, who was unconscious Police found gas bottles and accelerant in the car 8pm: The man was taken into custody and transferred to Royal North Shore Hospital with serious injuries Memorial Avenue in Merrylands is still closed to the public Advertisement

The incident, which occurred about 7pm, was described by police as 'a very deliberate attack'.

The man, who was arrested about 8pm, is known to police but is not believed to have any known links to a terrorist organisation.

He is said to have a history of mental illness.

The man was taken to Royal North Shore Hospital, which has a severe burns unit, and is in a very serious condition according to police.

Assistant NSW Police commissioner Denis Clifford said officers noticed a car sitting in the driveway of the police station about 7pm, and thought it was odd so they approached the car.

He said the man did not speak to officers, but ignited the interior of the vehicle and himself and drove it down the driveway where it hit a roller door.

Officers were able to put out the flames and drag the man out of the car, who was unconscious at the time.

The station had been recently fortified after receiving threats including letters threatening attacks on ‘non-Muslims’ and pictures of ISIS fighters holding severed heads

The incident, which occurred about 7pm, was described by police as 'a very deliberate attack'

A statement from NSW Police confirmed they established a perimeter around the incident on Memorial Avenue

Officers from the Rescue and Bomb Disposal Unit are examining the vehicle used in the incident

'There was accelerant still in the car when police approached, petrol perhaps but I can't confirm it was gas,' Assistant Commissioner Clifford said.

He said there was nothing to indicate the incident was related to terrorism, but it was a concern considering recent events worldwide, and police were 'keeping an open mind'.

'Its very concerning, this is a serious incident. The police reacted very bravely and its just a miracle that no one else was seriously injured,' he said.

'Once the station is clear it will be a crime scene, but we will try and reopen the station as quickly as we can.'

While no police officers or members of the public were injured during the incident, Mr Clifford said he could understand the concerns of local residents.

'It's a busy area. It was late night shopping. There were a lot of people around,' he said.

Mr Clifford urged witnesses to come forward.

'Particularly if there's any mobile phone footage, as is often the case these days, that may assist us to start to put some pieces together,' he said.

Assistant NSW Police commissioner Dennis Clifford said officers noticed a car sitting in the driveway of the police station about 7pm, and thought it was odd so they approached the car

NSW Police confirmed they established a perimeter around the incident on Memorial Avenue.

The perimeter remains in place as a precaution while officers from the Rescue and Bomb Disposal Unit attend and examine the vehicle.

Police are trying to establish the identity of the man through the car's registration and license plate.

It comes as four men were charged earlier this year over the murder of police accountant Curtis Cheng who was shot and killed outside police headquarters in Parramatta in October last year.

Police allege Raban Alou, 18, Milad Atai, 20, Mustafa Dirani, 23 and Talal Alameddine, 22, planned the terror attack outside the police headquarters.

Assistant NSW Police Commissioner Dennis Clifford (pictured) said the man did not speak, but ignited the interior of the vehicle and himself and drove it down the driveway where it hit a roller door. Officers were able to put out the flames and drag the man out of the car

Assistant Commissioner Clifford (pictured) said there was nothing to indicate the incident was related to terrorism, but it was a concern considering recent events worldwide

'Its very concerning, this is a serious incident. The police reacted very bravely and its just a miracle that no one else was seriously injured,' Assistant Commissioner Clifford said

A witness, who did not want to be named, said several police squads and emergency crews surrounded the building and numerous people saw a figure being taken away from the scene on a stretcher.

A woman, who also didn’t want to be named, told Daily Mail Australia that her and her five-year-old daughter live across the street.

‘It’s very surprising for the area, I’ve never really seen anything dangerous happen here,’ she said.

She added that the incident was very worrying.

A witness said they heard 'a big bang, a big loud sound like someone screaming'.

A witness, who did not want to be named, said several police squads and emergency crews surrounded the building and numerous people saw a figure being taken away from the scene on a stretcher

Another witness said to Channel Nine: 'Police were yelling 'Get out of the car' but the man refused to get out of the car, then we heard taser shots'

Another witness said: 'Police were yelling 'Get out of the car' but the man refused to get out of the car, then we heard taser shots'.

Other witness said police had blocked off Merrylands Road, and there was a strong burning smell from the area.

Merrylands Century 21 real estate chief executive Rafi Younes said: 'All the roads are blocked so the police wouldn’t let anybody go close.

'We’ve been told to close the shops and leave the area.'

A witness said several police squads and emergency crews have surrounded the building and numerous people saw a figure being taken away from the scene on a stretcher

Another witness said there was a strong burning smell and police has told people to leave the area

Mr Younes and his colleague Leonardo De La Vega said they had been told by witnesses there was subsequently an explosion, but it was unclear what caused it.

'So they had riot police and ambulance outside the street,' Mr De La Vega said.

'You could smell something was burning, you could smell it burning.'

Numerous cars are stuck in the blocked off road, and drivers were asked to abandon them for the time being.

The incident comes as four men were charged earlier this year over the murder of police accountant Curtis Cheng (left), who was shot and killed outside police headquarters in Parramatta in October last year

Police allege Raban Alou, 18, Milad Atai, 20, Mustafa Dirani, 23 and Talal Alameddine, 22, planned the terror attack on Mr Cheng (pictured) outside the police headquarters

Lone gunman Farhad Jabar Khalil Mohammad (pictured) shot Mr Cheng outside the police headquarters last year