Officers hit by reversing car after trying to speak to motorist at resort petrol station

The pair had attempted to stop a Vauxhall Vectra on the forecourt of Sainsbury’s petrol station in Talbot Road, Blackpool, when it suddenly reversed.

They were struck by the driver’s open door and knocked to the ground, a spokeswoman for Lancashire Police said.

The men went to Blackpool Victoria Hospital for treatment for minor injuries, while their colleagues began hunting for the Vectra, which drove off after also hitting two parked police cars.

They found it abandoned nearby, and shortly after made two arrests at an address in Blackpool, the spokeswoman said.

Witnesses described seeing as many as nine police vehicles at the petrol station at around 9.30pm on Saturday, with rumours circulating online of an armed robbery.

The junction leading to both the petrol station and the Mecca bingo hall from Talbot Road was blocked off, with an unmarked police car forming part of a three-vehicle cordon.

Two stationary police cars sat underneath the forecourt roof – one with its door still open – while officers stood talking nearby.

The two injured policemen had attended the petrol station following reports of suspicious activity, police said. They briefly spoke to the driver before the situation ‘escalated’, the spokeswoman added.

A spokeswoman from the North West Ambulance Service (NWAS) said a rapid response vehicle was called to the scene at 9.43pm but later cancelled, with the two injured officers making their own way to hospital.

* An 18-year-old woman from Blackpool accepted a police caution for assaulting a constable in execution of his duty.

* Gary Sheridan, 29, of Powell Avenue, South Shore, was charged with driving whilst disqualified, using a motor vehicle on a road or public place without third party insurance, two offences of assault with intent to resist arrest, dangerous driving, and criminal damage to property valued under £5,000.

He was remanded in custody and is due to appear at Blackpool Magistrates’ Court this morning.