'Fear for welfare' incident at River Thames near Waitrose

Multiple fire engines and police cars arrived at Waitrose on Botley Road yesterday morning (November 23) as firefighters were seen carrying a dinghy to Botley Bridge at around 9.15am.

Thames Valley Police has described the large presence of armed police, police dogs, a drone and helicopter as a "fear for welfare incident".

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But the force has refused to comment further when repeatedly pushed for more information by the Oxford Mail. 

A spokesman said: "As this was a fear for welfare we won't be commenting further than we did on our social media channel earlier today."

It is believed that the emergency services had reason to enter the section of the river behind the supermarket.

Fire engines called to Botley Road in Oxford (Image: NQ staff)Two hours later a make-shift police cordon was put in place using Christmas trees as the response began to intensify before the area was taped off.

The cordon blocked the back of the Waitrose car park where the river is accessible.

A dog unit was first called to the supermarket while a helicopter circled above.

Shortly after armed officers arrived on the scene as a drone was launched above the area.

Police confirmed just before 1pm the force had been dealing with a "fear for welfare" incident and said there was “no wider threat to the public”.

At around 1.25pm, an air ambulance landed nearby in Botley Park. It left the scene minutes later.

Around 20 minutes later the police cordon was taken down and the car park reopened with only two police cars left remaining at the scene.

Christmas trees were used as part of the cordon (Image: Liam Davies)

A spokesman for Oxfordshire Fire and Rescue Service said it became a police-led incident and the fire service was stood down after initially being called.

The Waitrose store remained open as normal throughout the incident with the supermarket declining to comment due to it being a police-led incident.

It is understood that the store workers had been informed of the reasoning behind the large emergency response but were told not to inform the public.

A householder on Prestwich Place said: "I saw a drone flying above and wondered what was going on."

Another homeowner said: "I could see lots of police milling about behind Waitrose but the trees were obscuring most of the view."

Emergency services in the Waitrose car park (Image: Liam Davies, Newsquest)

One eyewitness said he saw a person in a stand-off with police on the roof of Waitrose. He alleges that the man was holding a knife.

During the incident, a Thames Valley Police spokesperson said: “We are currently on scene dealing with a fear for welfare incident in Botley Road, Oxford near to the Waitrose.

“The store is operating as normal and there is no wider threat to the public.

“Thank you for your understanding.”

Just after 3pm Thames Valley Police said: "The fear for welfare in Botley Road has been resolved safely and the cordon that was in place has now been removed.

"Thank you for your patience and co-operation."