A ‘laughing’ man hurled three petrol bombs at a Dover immigration centre before driving to a nearby petrol station to ‘kill himself’, with an army bomb squad then moving in to inspect the car over fears of more explosives.
The attacker, a white man wearing a checked shirt, drove up to the centre in a white SEAT sports utility vehicle on Sunday morning.
He threw three petrol bombs with fireworks, one of which did not go off, a photographer said.
He then drove to a nearby petrol station and killed himself, it was said. Police arrived minutes afterwards and cordoned off the area.
Witnesses at the scene described seeing the man laughing as he threw the bombs, as others reported hearing an explosion at the scene.
The incident came after almost 1,000 migrants arrived in the UK after crossing the Channel on Saturday.
Army bomb disposal units have been seen inspecting the car allegedly involved in the incident. Police have cordoned off a BP petrol station on the A20 opposite the Home Office immigration centre, formerly known as Tug Haven. Officers can be seen standing by a white 69-plate SEAT SUV – believed to have been driven by the suspect.
The area has been sealed off with police tape, while the vehicle, which is parked by the rear car wash, has been covered with blue tarpaulin.
A bomb disposal pick-up truck was also spotted at the petrol station – with two Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) experts seen examining the SUV.
A man throws a petrol bomb out of a car window next to the Border Force centre in Dover on Sunday morning
Flames could be seen on the ground as the man threw a petrol bomb with a firework attached of the car window
A man threw three petrol bombs at a migrant processing centre in Kent, and took his own life according to witnesses
The petrol bomb flew out of the window as the man threw it to the ground in Dover next to a border force centre
One of the three bombs is understood not to have gone off, while two others are believed to have become ignited
Members of the military and UK Border Force extinguish a fire from a petrol bomb in Dover, Kent
The extinguished fire from a petrol bomb at the migrant processing centre in Dover, following an attack on Sunday morning
Gary Smith, 31, who saw the incident said that the man laughed as he threw the petrol bombs.
‘I was walking over a nearby bridge and I could see him throwing the bombs,’ he told The Sun.
‘They we’re making loud bangs. I think he threw about four or five. He was just laughing while he was doing it. It was crazy.’
Graham Hall, a 60-year-old international lorry driver from Market Harborough, was nearby when he heard the explosion.
He said: ‘I was by my truck and I just heard this bang — I thought it was a bird scarer or something, so didn’t really think much about it.
‘Then a couple hours later I heard what happened, it was like all hell broke loose.’
Eye witness Mark Williamson, 59, an international lorry driver from Leeds, was on the scene moments after the driver died.
He said: ‘I saw the dead guy just after it happened. I was going to meet my mate for a coffee and I saw the fella in the white vehicle sort of hanging out the window.
‘The next minute, armed response turned up. It was surreal.’
‘I heard what I thought was cannons going off and thought it must have been an event,’ another witness told Kent Online.
‘We paused the TV to hear. There were at least six or seven.
‘To think it was actually explosions that we heard is just so upsetting. I really hope no one is hurt.’
Staff inside the BP fuel station garage were sent home for the day at 2.30pm. A colleague said they had been shocked by what happened.
The group managed to successfully extinguish the flames after the petrol bomb was thrown
Another fire burns next to the Border Force centre after a firebomb attack in Dover
The emergency services erect a tent around the car allegedly involved in an incident near the migrant processing centre
The car – previously covered with a tarpaulin – was concealed from view after police erected a forensic tent around it
Emergency services rush to the scene of the fire at the migrant processing centre in Dover, Kent
A map shows the location of the migrant processing centre where the man threw three petrol bombs before driving to a nearby garage and taking his own life according to witnesses
A view of the docks and the migrant processing centre in Dover, Kent, following the incident
The attacker was described as a white man in a checked top, who drove up to the centre in a white SEAT sports utility vehicle
Police officers stand by a tent around the car allegedly involved in an incident near the migrant processing centre in Dover
The emergency services at the car allegedly involved in an incident in Dover on Sunday morning
The emergency services erect a tent around the car allegedly involved in an incident near the migrant processing centre in Dover
Suella Braverman has said she is ‘receiving regular updates’ after a ‘distressing’ incident in Dover when flammable devices were thrown at a migrant centre.
The Home Secretary tweeted: ‘There was a distressing incident in Dover earlier today.
‘I am receiving regular updates on the situation.
‘My thoughts are with those affected, the tireless Home Office staff and police responding.
‘We must now support those officers as they carry out their investigation.’
Immigration Minister Robert Jenrick will visit both Dover and Manston over concerns about tensions and overcrowding at the immigration centres, ITV reported.
While Dover MP Natalie Elphicke told the news outlet that she warned the Immigration Minister this week about rising tensions around migration after an incident raised concerns last Sunday.
Mr Jenrick will visit both Dover and the Manston processing centre to ‘take charge of the situation’, Ms Elphicke said.
A Home Office spokeswoman said: ‘We are aware of an incident at Western Jet Foil, Dover and police are in attendance. It would not be appropriate to comment further at this stage.’
Kent Police stated they were called at 11.22am to The Viaduct, where ‘two to three incendiary devices’ had caused a fire.
‘One minor injury was reported and the suspect has been identified and located,’ a spokesman said. The force added they were ‘unable to confirm’ reports that the suspect had died and said ‘inquiries are ongoing’.
Kent Fire and Rescue Service confirmed its crews had put out fires. Nathalie Elphicke, the Conservative MP for Dover, said she was ‘deeply shocked’.
Government figures show almost 1,000 migrants arrived in the UK via the port yesterday after crossing the Channel.
Huge lines of people thought to be migrants could be seen waiting to be processed at the Border Force compound in Dover, Kent, as a total of 990 arrived.
Nearly 40,000 have arrived in the UK so far this year after attempting the treacherous trip from France, crossing the world’s busiest shipping lanes in dinghies and other small boats, provisional figures show.
It is the highest number of arrivals in one day for a number of weeks, with more crossings taking place on Sunday morning.
The highest number in a single day was set on August 22 when 1,295 people arrived in the country.
It comes after an immigration watchdog said he was left ‘speechless’ by conditions at the Manston migrant processing centre in Kent, and warned the site has already passed the point of being unsafe.
Earlier this month, the Manston site reported an outbreak of diptheria among its population of 3,000. Bosses at Manston stated one a ‘small number’ of cases were being treated.
A police cordon remains outside the nearby petrol station, where the alleged arsonist is understood to have taken his own life
A police officer covers the car allegedly involved in the incident near the migrant processing centre in Dover, Kent
The scene at a migrant processing centre in Dover where an attacker threw petrol bombs on Sunday morning
A fire crew attends the scene of a suspected attack on a migrant processing centre in Dover
A group of people thought to be migrants at the migrant processing centre in Dover
Dozens of people were spotted being evacuated from the compound after the fire broke out
Kent Fire and Rescue Service outside the Port of Dover Cruise Terminal, close to the camp where the fire occurred
People arriving at a migrant processing centre shortly before the suspected arson attack in Dover
Chief inspector of borders and immigration David Neal told MPs earlier this week that Manston was originally meant to hold between 1,000 and 1,600 people, but there were 2,800 at the site when he visited on Monday, with more arriving.
The revelations prompted the Refugee Council to call for ‘urgent’ action and request a meeting with ministers to discuss proposals for tackling the problems.
Migrants are meant to stay at the short-term holding facility, which opened in January, for 24 hours while they undergo checks before being moved into immigration detention centres or asylum accommodation – currently hotels.
The Sunday Times reported Home Secretary Suella Braverman has been accused of failing to act on legal advice received at least three weeks ago which warned migrants were being detained for unlawfully long periods.
A Home Office spokesperson said: ‘The Home Secretary has taken urgent decisions to alleviate issues at Manston and source alternative accommodation. Claims advice was deliberately ignored are completely baseless.
‘It is right we look at all available options so decisions can be made based on the latest operational and legal advice.
‘The number of people arriving in the UK via small boats has reached record levels, which has put our asylum system under incredible pressure and costs the British taxpayer millions of pounds a day.’
Cabinet minister Michael Gove said the situation at Manston is ‘deeply concerning’, but he denied the Home Secretary ignored or dismissed legal advice.
‘The situation in Manston is not what it should be,’ he told Sky News’s Sophy Ridge On Sunday programme.
‘Everyone acknowledges that. We have more than 2,000 people there at the moment.’
The Liberal Democrats have called on the Government to publish the legal advice reportedly ignored by Ms Braverman.