Steel drums are echoing across west London this morning as Notting Hill Carnival gets off to a colourful start with revellers dousing each other in neon paint in the first street party of the two day event.Thousands are already flocking to the streets of Notting Hill in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea for the historic Caribbean event held annually over the August Bank Holiday weekend. Images show people dancing in glittering outfits and playing steel drums to kick off the Families and Children's Day parade.Meanwhile, early birds arrived at the street party at 6am and began throwing body paint at each other and setting off colourful smoke flares as part of J'Ouvert, a vibrant pre-dawn ritual.Some are fully covered in black paint and wearing horns to represent Jab Jab - from the French word diable, meaning devil. The costume dates back to the 1838 abolition of slavery across the Caribbean when people took to the streets in all black to celebrate their freedom from devilish oppressors.A picture appears to show Met Police officers detaining a man at the carnival this morning. St John Ambulance Community Support Vehicles have been pictured dotted around the area surrounded by carnival-goers and street food vans. Attendees will see a mixture of sunshine and showers today, with conditions turning wetter into the evening. Monday will be drier and brighter, but still with some showers.This year marks 60 years since Notting Hill Carnival began in 1966 and, while Saturday saw a quieter start with young performers taking to the stage at the traditional Panorama ticketed steelband competition, Sunday is expected to draw far bigger crowds as the carnival takes to the streets. Thousands have already arrived with an estimated two million revellers set to attend the event Images show people dancing in glittering outfits and playing steel drums to kick off the Families and Children's Day parade Meanwhile, early birds arrived at the street party at 6am and began throwing body paint at each other and setting off colourful smoke flares as part of J'Ouvert, a vibrant pre-dawn ritual A picture appears to show Met Police officers detaining a man at the carnival this morning Some are fully covered in black paint and wearing horns to represent Jab Jab - from the French word diable, meaning devil Revellers take part in the 'J'Ouvert' celebrations at the Notting Hill Carnival on Sunday morning A young girl pictured wearing a fabulous purple outfit at Notting Hill Carnival's Family Day on Sunday It is estimated that around two million revellers will attend the event with 7,000 Metropolitan Police officers and staff on duty (Pictured: Met Police officers walking the streets on Sunday morning) Carnival-goers covered in body paint early on Sunday as Notting Hill Carnival's street party begins A Metropolitan Police facial recognition van installed for the Notting Hill carnivalIt is estimated that around two million revellers will attend the event with 7,000 Metropolitan Police officers and staff on duty.More than 3,000 stewards - double the usual number - have also been deployed after crowd control responsibilities were transferred from Scotland Yard to the event organisers following an extra £4.66million grant announced by Sir Sadiq Khan in March.But Susan Hall, leader of the Conservative group at the London Assembly, said she remained concerned about the security risks and called on the Mayor to 'get a grip on this once and for all before more people are injured or die needlessly'. The mammoth police and security operation is in place to maintain law and order after crime has continued to rise year-on-year and last year's record-breaking number of arrests.Last year, 528 people were arrested, 4 people were stabbed, 18 people were arrested for sexual assaults and 55 officers were assaulted. In 2024, two people were murdered and eight were stabbed.Homeowners and businesses began boarding up their properties earlier this week in preparation for the carnival which often results in damage done to buildings.A Tesco Express on Ladbroke Road was covered up with temporary boards on Wednesday, while its cashpoint was cordoned off with tape.In recent years, Notting Hill residents have complained about attendees urinating and defecating in their front gardens. Some even posted videos catching people in the act which then went viral online and received a lot of backlash.Metropolitan Police Federation chair Paula Dodds warned officers were 'already stretched beyond belief', adding that their 'welfare must remain a top priority'.The Met said last year's policing operation cost about £15million – and while the force hopes this year's total cost will be lower, this 'still represents a very significant financial outgoing in the context of unprecedented budget challenges for policing'.