Residents in an area of Christchurch were evacuated by police on Saturday 19 June, following an incident.

At 7.26am officers were called to reports of a disturbance at an address in Everest Road.

It is reported that a female sustained minor injuries during the incident and had already left the address before officers arrived.

One man remained inside the property and officers spent a number of hours speaking to the man with the aim of bringing the matter to a safe conclusion and to ensure he could access the appropriate medical care.

A section of Everest Road was cordoned off to allow officers to deal with the incident safely. While no immediate threat to members of the public was identified, a number of residents were evacuated and the nearby One Stop store was evacuated and closed as a precautionary measure.

The incident was brought to a safe conclusion at 12.45pm. A 37-year-old local man has been arrested on suspicion of assault, criminal damage and threats to cause damage and is assisting officers with their enquiries.

Chief Superintendent Mark Callaghan, local policing area commander for Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole, said: “I fully understand that this incident caused great inconvenience to local residents and I would like to send them my personal thanks for their patience and understanding. I would like to reassure them that the evacuations were entirely necessary to allow officers to deal with the incident safely and we allowed people back home as soon as we possibly could.

“I would also like to thank my officers and other emergency service colleagues for their continued professionalism in bringing this incident to a safe conclusion.”