Middlesbrough gang war - live: Cars set on fire at memorial for man who died in A66 crash

Police are dealing with a number of incidents across Teesside tonight as violence and crime escalates in the area linked to criminal gangs.

The town is gripped by fear of a gangland turf war that has claimed nine lives in five days following the death of seven people, including two police officers, in a crash on the A66 at the weekend.

Footage shared online shows a number of cars on fire in a field as balloons were released at a memorial event , thought to be for Michael Robert Cahill, 23, who died in the A66 crash. Police have been seen responding to a number of incidents across the area after 200 cops, including armed officers, were brought in from other areas to support Cleveland Police on Thursday.

Andy McDonald, the MP for Middlesbrough and Thornaby East, told Times Radio on Thursday: “People are saying that they are going to their shops and not feeling safe to do so and feeling trapped in their own homes.

“This is terrorism and we’ve got to have an appropriate response to deal with the people who are causing such mayhem in our communities and to allow people to lead their peaceful lives.”

Residents told of their concerns after two more incidents in the same area on Thursday.

A vehicle crashed into a wall outside a house in Steele Crescent, South Bank, minutes away from the other two scenes in the early hours and at about midday a 39-year-old was stabbed in nearby Sedgemoor Road, Eston.

A man who lives near the scene of the stabbing said people in the area were “trying to keep our heads down”.

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

Anna Turley, MP for Redcar said in a post on Facebook: “I know how worried people are, and understandably people want to know what is being done.

“There is a significant response under way, with additional officers and resources being brought into our area and agencies working together around the clock.”

She added: “People have a right to feel safe in their homes and in their communities. That is our absolute priority.”

Hundreds of extra police officers have been drafted in after a spate of deadly incidents in a Teesside town, which a local MP says has left people “not feeling safe” going to the shops.

Some 200 extra officers have been deployed to help Cleveland Police after a number of violent incidents which followed a head-on crash on the A66, which killed seven people, including two police officers, on Saturday.