Residents were evacuated from their homes after an escaped mental health patient threatened to start an explosion in a flat.

Sussex Police were called to Winterbourne Close in Durrington at about 8.40pm on Saturday after a man who had been reported missing from a mental health facility was found alone inside a flat.

The man refused to let officers in and threatened to harm them and himself.

Negotiators spent more than four hours trying to persuade the man to open the door but he made further threats to cause an explosion and so other flats at the property were evacuated as a precaution.

Fire and ambulance crews were also called to the scene.

Eventually the siege was broken when police officers forced entry into to the flat and a 51-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of affray.

A Sussex Police spokesman said no one was hurt in the incident.

Among those evacuated were resident Emma, who is six months pregnant, her partner Peter and her friend Zara, who is four months pregnant.

Emma said: "It was quite scary.

"We could hear him shouting filthy pigs and saying he was going to explode the flats.

"He had a lot of chemicals in the flat which he could have used.

"Me and my partner were like what are we going to do? where are we going to go?

"We literally had two seconds to get out, we didn't have time to pick anything up and you worry about all the things of sentimental value you ahve to leave behind.

"We were evacuated to Centenary House and spent hours in the police officers' rest area."

The 51-year-old man was later released on police bail and has now been detained for hospital treatment under the Mental Health Act.

Were you effected by this incident? Then call 01273 544530 or email neil.vowles@theargus.co.uk.