London (CNN)A car crashed into security barriers outside the UK’s Houses of Parliament during rush hour Tuesday morning, injuring two people. The male driver of the car has been detained.
British counter-terrorism police are leading the investigation into the incident, which happened shortly after 7.30 a.m., but added that they were “keeping an open mind.”
London Ambulance Service treated two people for injuries that were not believed to be serious, it said in a statement. Both were taken to hospital.
The nearby Westminster underground station was closed, according to Transport for London, while roads around the area were cordoned off.
Parliament is currently in summer recess.
Eyewitness Ewelina U. Ochab told CNN she saw the incident take place from the other side of the pavement.
“I heard some noise, and someone screamed. I turned around and I saw a silver car driving from the crossing — very fast and close to the railings, maybe even on the pavement,” Ochab said.
“The car drove at speed… There was a loud bang from the collusion and a bit if smoke. The driver did not get out. The guards started screaming to people to move away. One elderly man rushed me to hide behind a monument, just in case.”
Jackie Laidley from London, works as a manager in the Cabinet office, and told CNN she couldn’t reach her place of work due to police cordons.
“We’re kind of stuck waiting to hear from our bosses what to do,” she said.
“We’ve had attacks over the years… You just thank your stars that you’re really not caught up in it. When you live in London in a big city anything like this can happen,” she added.
Security measures in the area were reinforced after the Westminster Bridge attack in March 2017.
Four people were killed in that incident when a 52-year-old British man, Khalid Masood, rammed a rental car onto the sidewalk on Westminster Bridge. Masood then stabbed an unarmed police officer.