A London double-decker bus was engulfed in flames after catching fire on a street in the capital.

Smoke could be seen billowing out from the back of the bus, with parts falling to the ground, on Brixton Hill in Brixton, south London, on Friday morning.

The London Fire Brigade said the driver and passengers had left the bus before firefighters arrived, and there were no injuries.

Laurence Nealon, 28, from Brixton, said: “I was in a work meeting when I noticed the smoke going past my window.

“I popped downstairs with my housemates to see what was going on and was shocked to see the blaze.

“There was some murmur that the bus would explode and caused a bit of anxiety but it quickly transpired it didn’t.

“As soon as the fire brigade arrived it was speedily taken care of.

“It’s the last thing you expect to see when you’re working from home in the morning.”

In a statement, the fire service said: “Part of a double decker bus was damaged by fire.

“The driver and passengers left the bus before the brigade arrived.

“There were no reports of any injuries.

“The brigade’s 999 control officers took 19 calls to the blaze.

“The brigade was called at 0950 and the fire was under control by 1022.

“One fire engine from Brixton Fire Station attended the scene.”

Meanwhile, 10 fire engines and 70 firefighters were called to a blaze at a flat above a shop in Camden just after midday.

The LFB said in a statement that “part of the ground floor shop and most of a first-floor flat roof is alight”.

Ryan Salisbury, 30, said: “I was driving down the High Street at Camden, and from my vantage point, I could just see like a few small licks of flame coming out of the building.

“By the time I travelled probably about 500 yards down the road in the traffic, by the time I got to the corner where the fire was, the full roof of the one building was ablaze.”

Station Commander Brett Loft, who attended the incident, said: “Firefighters are working in incredibly hot and arduous conditions to quickly bring the fire under control.

“There was heavy smoke in the area and local residents were advised to keep their windows and doors closed, but this is now subsiding.

“There are currently no reports of any injuries.”

In response to speculation that the London heatwave is responsible for the number of fires across the capital, the fire service tweeted: “Busy afternoon with a number of fires across the capital that are very visible.

“A number of people are asking whether they are related to the heat.

“All fires will be investigated and it’s too early to say what the causes are at the current time.”