Police raced to a flat last night amid fears that as many as 70 venomous snakes had escaped - but it turned out to be a hoax 999 call.
Officers shut the busy road near Finsbury Park in North London just before 8pm and carried out frantic searches for just over an hour before it was called off.
The Met Police confirmed it was a hoax phone call, MyLondon reports.
Dramatic video from the scene shows dozens of officers and police vehicles outside a building.
The caption read: "Estimated 70 poisonous snakes have escaped from a flat (according to the police) on the road between Manor House and Finsbury Park."
Many started panicking with numerous accounts re-sharing the false information.
The official Hackney Police Twitter account later clarified the situation.
They said: "Good evening. I attended scene earlier as the patrol sergeant. This did not involve animals nor would we have revealed this, unless operationally necessary. I hope this clarifies.
"There is an ongoing investigation so I'm limited but it did not involve snakes, animals or 70 of anything in fact."
The account that shared the video clarified it was a hoax and shared an image of a message they received from an unidentified person telling them about the snakes.
A Met Police spokesman said: "Police were called by the London Ambulance Service at 19:48hrs on Friday, 6 August following concerns for the welfare of residents at an address on Seven Sisters Road, N4.
“Emergency services attended. No one was found injured.
“At this stage, the incident is being treated as a hoax call.”
