Tragedy as 74-year-old man killed by bus with reports of 'severed head' found on street

A man has died after being struck by a bus following unverified reports of a 'severed head' being found on the streets of Edinburgh.

Police have since asked the public to stop sharing distressing photos and videos on social media, 'which are causing distress to the deceased's family'.

The 74-year-old was hit by a single-decker bus in the Cowgate area at around 7.25pm on Saturday (2 November), Police Scotland has said.

A man, 74, in Edinburgh was fatally struck by a bus, police has said (PA wire)

People in the surrounding area were asked to leave as the roads were closed off for forensic officers attending the scene.

The roads have since re-opened after police said 'there is no risk to the wider public'.

BBC Scotland News reporter, James Delaney, said: "Inside were two forensic tents, probably about 100m apart.

"The Cowgate is usually jumping on a Saturday night, but the bars and pubs inside the cordon had been closed.

"We saw about a dozen or so people in white forensic suits, and there were a few guys in suits too who I assume were detectives."

Sergeant Louise Birrell, of the Road Policing Unit, Edinburgh, added: “Our thoughts are with the family and friends of the man who died.

“Extensive enquiries are ongoing to establish the full circumstances of this incident.

“Officers have spoken to a number of people who were in the area at the time and work is ongoing to check public and private CCTV footage.

“We are still keen to hear from anyone who has not yet spoken to police.

Police have asked the public to stop sharing distressing photos and videos on social media (Roy/PA wire)

“If you have any information about what happened, then please get in touch.

“Anyone with information is asked to call the police via 101.

“Please quote incident number 3395 of Saturday, 2 November 2024.”

Chief Inspector Trisha Clark, the local area commander, has also asked for people to stop sharing various images and videos on social media out of respect for the family.

“We are aware of videos and images circulating on social media which are causing distress to the deceased's family and those viewing them inadvertently,” she warned.

“We would ask members of the public not to share them out of respect for his family, and to report them to the relevant social media platform to prevent further circulation.

“There has been a lot of speculation, and I would like to reassure the local community that this was an isolated incident and there is no risk to the wider public.

“This was a tragic incident. We are investigating a crash, and our road policing officers, assisted by local officers, are continuing to carry out enquiries.”

“Anyone with concerns or any information which could assist the investigation should contact police.”

Scottish Ambulance Service told LADbible in a statement: “We received a call at 19:32 on Saturday 2 November to attend a road traffic collision on Cowgate, Edinburgh. We dispatched one ambulance, one special operations response team (SORT), and one paramedic response unit (PRU) to the scene.”

LADbible Group has contacted Police Scotland for comment.