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A helicopter swooped into Trafalgar Square and landed metres from Nelson's Column after a young woman suffered serious injuries falling from a lion sculpture.

The woman, believed to be in her 20s, sustained a potentially life threatening head injury after plummeting from the top of one of the 11ft bronze statues.

Hundreds witnessed London's Air Ambulance circle the square before touching down just before 7.30pm this evening.

Doctors reportedly treated the woman for up to 30 minutes before she was taken away in an ambulance.

Retail worker Martin Peaple, 26, from Sidcup, said: "It started circling above the square, it was coming closer and closer to the ground so I helped clear everyone out of the way.

"There were a good thousand standing and watching what was going on.

"A lot of people were asking if it was here for a show."

The woman was rushed to the Royal London Hospital as a priority, accompanied by the air ambulance doctor.

A police spokesman said her condition was initially thought to be life threatening, though there has since been no update.

Mr Peaple, who is currently fundraising for the air ambulance, said: "After it landed there were three doctors and two paramedics working on her for about 20 minutes to half an hour, before they put her in the back of a land ambulance and took her away."

Many took to Twitter to share images of the surprising sight in one of London's most famous tourist destinations.

One woman named Tanya wrote: "It's not everyday you get to see a helicopter take off from Trafalgar Square!"

Holly Cocker posted: "Helicopter just landed in the middle of Trafalgar sq to pick up a poor girl who was in a bad way. Crazy!"

A spokesman for the Metropolitan Police said: "It was a person who fell from a lion and suffered a head injury.

"An air ambulance landed to take them to hospital.

"The injuries were being treated as life threatening at that time."

A spokeswoman for the London Ambulance Service said: "We were called at 7.24pm to reports of a person fallen at Trafalgar Square.

"We sent an ambulance crew, a motorcycle responder and London's Air Ambulance team to the scene.

"We treated a woman reported to be in her 20s for a head injury.

"She was taken as a priority to the Royal London Hospital escorted by the doctor from London's Air Ambulance."