22 Confirmed dead In Manchester Arena Explosion

Around 11pm in the North West of England, reports of an explosion at Manchester Arena began flooding in.

As the city streets filled with sirens, Greater Manchester Police began advising the public to stay away from the scene. Fans of international music star Ariana Grande took to twitter immediately, with reports that the lights had suddenly been raised as a very loud bang was heard.

Nineteen people confirmed dead

22 people have been confirmed dead at this stage, with 59 people being injured. Sources have informed us that the police are treating this as a potential terrorist incident.

Manchester Arena have reported that the explosion occurred in a public space outside of the venue.

Andy Holey, who had been waiting to pick up his wife and daughter from the event, told the BBC that the explosion: "Threw me about 30 feet from one set of doors to the other set of doors. My first thought was to go into the arena to try to find my family. I managed to find them eventually and they're ok."

Everyone ran out screaming

With a lot of early speculation on social media, the reasons for the panic were being listed as anything from gunshots to a large balloon bursting.

One attendee reported on Twitter: "There was a loud bang when the lights came on and everyone ran out screaming." @SmileFor_Niall

It would seem the explosion itself may not be the primary cause of some of the injuries sustained; Rachel who had left the concert early with her daughter told BBC Radio Manchester: "As we turned around the corner there was an horrific stampede of people coming down the steps, people falling on the floor. I grabbed my daughter and we just ran."

Rail lines blocked

The Manchester Arena, Manchester's largest indoor events venue, is situated in the northern part of the city and can hold up to 18,000 people at capacity. The concert location is very close to Manchester Victoria station, and earlier Network Rail announced that rail lines in the vicinity had been blocked.

Cordons have been set up by the police, and reports have come in of a controlled explosion due to be carried out shortly by the authorities close to the location. Emergency services in the area have asked that the public only call them in life threatening situations so that their resources might be focused on this evening's incident.

Greater Manchester Police have told the public that they are working on setting up a hotline for anyone concerned about the safety of their loved ones.