Extra police officers deployed to assist Cleveland Police after Teesside incidents

The leader of Redcar and Cleveland Council says more than 200 officers have been, or will be, deployed from around the country, to support Cleveland Police, after a recent spate of incidents on Teesside.

Posting on social media, Councillor Alec Brown, said;

“Thank you so much to the Superintendent from Cleveland Police that has just taken their time to give updates to myself, Anna Turley (MP for Redcar), South Bank and Grangetown Ward Councillors.

“They are working 20 hour days to ensure the ongoing safety of innocent residents.

“Over 200 extra police officers from forces around the country are here and are on route, from detectives to armed response.

“I will sending a letter today to our Prime Minister asking for even more resource.

“The police really are doing an amazing job.

“If it is any reassurance at all, jobs called in to the police are actually down this week, however the seriousness of the ones that have been called in need serious and swift action.

“Everyone is heart broken over the loss of the aunt and little girl in Grangetown yesterday.

“People need to feel safe in their homes.”

A man is receiving treatment after he was assaulted on Thursday with a bladed weapon in Eston, some two miles away from the fatal crash on the A66 in Middlesbrough on Saturday.

In a statement, Cleveland Police said: “A 39-year-old man is receiving treatment following an assault involving a bladed weapon in an address on Sedgemoor Road in Eston around midday today (Thursday 27th August).

“No arrests have been made at this time, however, enquiries are ongoing into the incident.”

A man living near the scene of the stabbing in Eston said: “A bloke got stabbed and the street was full of armed police, the helicopter came, the lot.”

Referring to the postcode which covers Eston and Grangetown and South Bank, among other areas, he said: “TS6 has gone mad, it’s brutal.

“We are just trying to keep our heads down.”

Hartlepool United has said it will hold a two minutes’ silence for the police officers at its home fixture against Eastleigh on Friday.

Andy Burnham said the Government is offering “all of the support that the authorities need” after the “terribly tragic” house fire.

Asked about the incidents, the Prime Minister told reporters during a visit to South Wales: “Obviously we’re offering all of the support that the authorities need.

“The important thing, it’s a terribly tragic event that’s happened with the loss of a young woman and her seven-year-old niece.”

He continued: “Utterly devastating, and I’m sure there’s a whole community that is grieving, not just what happened at the weekend, and particularly we should stress our deepest respect for the police officers lost in the line of duty and sending our sympathies to their families.

“And we will obviously make sure that the support is there for them going forward.”

Police have arrested 17 people following the A66 crash, charging two of them and bailing the others, as part of investigations into alleged organised crime.

The Passat had been pursued by police following an earlier incident in which a house in the Acklam area of Middlesbrough, linked to Worthy, was rammed by a vehicle.

Police have previously said the five young men in the Passat may have had links to “serious and organised criminal activity” and four of them have previous convictions.

Former Middlesbrough mayor Andy Preston said the string of incidents in the area was “heartbreaking to see – not just the loss of life, but the further scarring of once proud communities”.

He said: “More incidents are happening and it looks like they’re related.

“Everyone’s praying that this peters out. If it doesn’t, more innocent lives could be at risk.”