Police surround Overstrand church after concerns for safety of a man locked inside

Armed police officers are surrounding a church in a small coastal village over concerns for a man believed to be armed with a knife.

Police were called to St Martins Church in Overstrand, North Norfolk just before 4pm on Thursday September 26 following concerns for a man in his 40s who was in a distressed state, and had locked himself inside.

Police say the man is alone in the church on Cromer Road and is in significant 'mental health distress.'

He is believed to be carrying a knife.

Specialist trained police negotiators are currently at the scene but police say they do not believe there is any wider threat to the public.

Chief Insp Nick Paling said: “We would like to thank the public for their continued assistance and patience.

"Please stay away from the scene to allow emergency service and traffic to move around freely. We may need to close the road temporarily, and for short periods of time, but we’ll try to open it again as soon as we can.

“I know how concerning this is for the local community and I’d ask people to please bear with us, we don’t know how long this will continue but please know we will do everything possible to bring this to a safe conclusion as swiftly and carefully as possible."

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