A guard who was standing guard over the Queen’s coffin appeared to pass out and fall on Thursday, prompting the BBC to halt its live transmission of the event.
The uniformed guard can be seen stumbling to his right twice in the video that was posted on social media before regaining his equilibrium.
A number of officials and police officers then rushed to the guard’s rescue as he later fell downward from the crimson podium onto the ground.
At this time, it is unclear if the guard was hurt.
Following the incident at around 12:30am, the BBC abruptly interrupted its live coverage of the lying in state, and viewers expressed their amazement and worry on social media.
“I hope the guard is OK. You can hurt yourself when you faint,” one person said on Twitter.
“Horrible incident just happened on the live stream of Her Majesty laying in rest, with a guard seeming to faint and fall straight forward and hit his head… I hope he’s well as it looked a very painful fall,” another person said.
At 5 o’clock on Wednesday, the public was allowed to view Queen Elizabeth II’s laying in state. Until September 19, the day of the burial, hundreds of thousands of people were anticipated to respectfully pass by to pay their respects.
Up until Monday morning, Westminster Hall is open around-the-clock, with guards standing in place for extended periods of time.
The Queen’s coffin is raised on a catafalque, and units from the Sovereign’s Bodyguard, the Household Division, or Yeoman Warders of the Tower of London keep watch at all times in each corner.
Up to 750,000 visitors are anticipated to view the late Queen’s casket before it is removed from honor at 6:30 am on Monday, according to officials.
Source: Yahoo
