Two men have been arrested after an 18-hour siege in which residents of a Gold Coast neighbourhood were forced to sleep in their cars.
The emergency declaration in Nerang, which had prohibited local people from accessing their houses and forced the closure of a local Catholic school, has now been withdrawn, according to Queensland Police.
‘Police thank the community for their patience and understanding during this incident,’ the statement posted by the police reads.
Two wanted individuals were apprehended by police after barricading themselves in an elderly couple’s duplex in Rimu Place, Nerang, at about 3:30 on Wednesday afternoon.
Nearby St Brigid’s Primary School was placed under lockdown right away, and the emergency declaration and exclusion zone were expanded two hours later.
Riverpark Drive, McLaren Road, Kopwhai Place, and Inverness Street, which were all shut off by scores of police on Thursday morning, are included in the exclusion zone.
With the siege still occurring as of 9 a.m. Thursday, police have encouraged residents to remain in their houses and warned the public to steer clear.
As temperatures dropped to 4 degrees Celsius, some locals spent the night sleeping in their automobiles, unable to return home.
Detective Acting Superintendent Chris Ahearn told reporters that ‘Police are certainly still on the scene there and negotiations are continuing’.
‘We are acutely aware of the impact on the local community in that area, with having a situation like this unfolding, bit we – it’s our intention to resolve it as soon as we can,’ says the spokesperson.
Residents in the cordoned-off area have resorted to social media to say that police can be heard using a megaphone to negotiate with the men.
One person wrote, ‘We are only a few houses away. Two armed men have barricaded themselves inside a home. There were two elderly people let out a few hours ago who went straight to ambulances.’
The standoff started on Wednesday afternoon when police apprehended two wanted guys who were being kept captive in an elderly couple’s duplex.
Several medical crews, as well as scores of police officers, are still on watch at the scene of the event.
‘We empathize with the members of the public who have been so inconvenienced by this action but again our guiding principles are nothing other than community safety, Acting Chief Superintendent Geoff Sheldon told the reporters.
He said, ‘We’re very keen to keep everyone safe to end this as peacefully and as soon possible. Any shot fired in any direction, by us and them, could easily land somewhere with tragic consequences.’
The men let the elderly couple out of the duplex. At the scene, paramedics treated a woman in her 80s for shock.
While On Thursday, St Brigid’s Primary School will still be closed.
‘Police have advised that the situation across from the school is ongoing and the immediate area remains closed’, the school posted.
St Brigid’s has been urged to stay closed until the issue calms. This applies to Before School Care as well.
On Thursday, the police closed several streets in Nerang as a heated showdown between police and two extends into its 16th hour.
The two men were sought by police on warrants to return to prison, according to reports.
According to reports, one of the men had ripped off a GPS ankle-tracking bracelet and fled before being nabbed by police.
The men are suspected of being involved in two recent shootings, including a drive-by gunshot at Arundel police station early Monday morning.
Last Saturday, shots were fired into a car passing through Coolangatta, injuring the male driver and merely missing his wife and children who were also in the vehicle.