ARMED police evacuated homes after a man barricaded himself inside a flat and threatened to set himself and officers on fire during a five-hour stand-off.

Police closed Station Road, Westcliff, overnight as the incident unfolded and an ambulance and two fire crews were on standby while negotiators tried to resolve the situation.

Concerned resident Tyler Atkins witnessed the incident.

The 19-year-old said: “It was about midnight when I noticed a few uniformed officers outside the home which isn’t unusual for that address unfortunately.

“I only realised how serious it must be when two unmarked police cars pulled up and police proceeded to gear up with shields and a battering ram.

“A man inside the house was shouting profanities loud enough for the whole street to hear and saying it was unfair and he just wanted to go to bed.

“At about 2am, ambulances and the fire crews started turning up and the road was closed and twenty minutes later, armed police were on scene equipping themselves with rifles and shields.

“The guy was throwing flammable liquid in the flat and outside the door and threatening to set the place on fire if they entered.

“Police had a negotiator to try and calm the man down - the stand off went on until at least 5am when I had to go to bed.”

Residents from flats within the same building were evacuated by police with riot shields for their own safety.

Officers from Essex Police’s Firearms Support Unit (FSU) used “distraction devices” similar to percussion grenades to bring the man into custody safely.

A spokesman for the team tweeted: “Officers used distraction devices to safely detain a male in Westcliff.

“We would like to thank the local community for their support and understanding while the operation developed.

“Great to work with the professionals from fire and ambulance.”

The incident left residents concerned about the safety of the area.

Mr Atkins added: “My girlfriend doesn’t live round here so she was pretty scared. I’ve seen most of it before but never armed police responding like that so I was shocked that it escalated to the level it did but I wasn’t scared.”

Another resident, who has asked not to be named and lives across the road, said: “We heard what sounded like several shots fired and there were armed police outside. It was terrifying.”

A man has been arrested following the incident.

The 41-year-old man, who was arrested on suspicion of a racially aggravated public order offence, remains in custody.

A spokesman for Essex Police said: “A man has been arrested following an incident in Westcliff.

“We were contacted at 8.30pm on Sunday, August 12, with reports of a disturbance at an address in Station Road which a man was being threatening and abusive towards another resident.

“We attended and the man barricaded himself in his flat and made threats to harm himself and officers.

“The road was closed and residents in the multi-occupancy premises were evacuated as a safety precaution while police officers negotiated with the 41-year-old man.

“Officers forced entry to his flat and a man was arrested on suspicion of a racially aggravated public order offence.

“He is currently in custody for questioning.”