Two o'clock and all is well

Thank you for all your kind words about yesterday and today's coverage. We're glad it was appreciated.

There's already been a lot said about what happened in Lewisham last night, but there are a few more things we'd like to add:

1. Respect and gratitude due to Lewisham Council's clean-up team who had cleared Lewisham before the volunteer army had got there this morning at 9am
2. Perhaps there is an upside to having Europe's largest police station on your doorstep - although the damage in Lewisham was serious, it was dwarfed by what happened in Croydon, Clapham and many other parts of the capital. No-one who saw the video of rioting in Woolwich can doubt how stretched the police were yesterday.
3. Well done too to Cllr Mike Harris, who sounded an early warning about the danger and came in for some bizarre stick for from some readers early in the evening, as though his Tweets, decrying the threats, had somehow stoked things up. That is a ridiculous charge.
4. Thanks to the London Fire Brigade, who say they had to deal with 15 times the number of fires they would handle on a normal night.

Right now, Brockley is calm. The sky is blue. The Co-Op has been fixed. Let's hope it stays that way. There is some speculation that the area will be hit again today and many businesses in Lewisham and elsewhere are closing early. We've just come back from Kings College Hospital, undergoing some rather brutal dentistry, leaving us looking like this guy:

The staff and service were fantastic and if you'll allow us to make a trite point, an example of how strong and successful London's multicultural society really is. Nonetheless, all the talk as they rooted around in our mouth was about the prospects for Camberwell this evening, which is among the areas rumoured to be a target, along with Greenwich, according to the Guardian (a reader confirms that Southwark Council is anticipating possible problems at Camberwell Green).

So if there are credible threats or outbreaks of looting today in South East London, we will create a new thread, with live updates. It will help our coverage if you can send us your updates, photos, etc via Twitter @BrockleyCentral

Finally, we'll leave you with the soothing words of Mayor Bullock, who said this in response to last night's rolling violence:

‘I condemn these acts of criminal violence which are being carried out by a minority of law breakers. Nothing can justify this behaviour.

‘I am deeply concerned about the impact on individuals and businesses in Lewisham. Police and other public servants have acted to deal with the issues our city faces but are being stretched to the limit. The Council will do everything it can to support the police and emergency services to protect the law-abiding community in our borough. We must not forget that the vast majority of our young people are decent, hard working individuals who will be appalled by the damage that is being done to our communities.’