Blackburn: Man suffers serious head injuries in assault on Whalley New Road

Emergency services were called to Whalley New Road at around 7.05am on Thursday, with police closing off the main road from Emerald Street all the way up to the Brownhill junction at Ramsgreave Drive.

A cordon was put in place from Ramsgreave Drive to just before Opal Street, with the alleyway between Whalley New Road and Cornelian Street also cordoned off.

Several police vans and cars remained at the scene throughout the morning, while officers carried out their investigations.

A spokesperson for the police said: "We were called to Whalley New Road, Blackburn, at 7.03am on October 7 following reports of an assault.

"Officers attended the scene and a road closure was put in place at the Roe Lee section of Whalley New Road and the Brownhill roundabout to allow officers to conduct their enquiries.

"A man in his 30s was later found at an address in Rishton with a number of injuries to his head.

"His injuries, although serious, are not thought to be life-threatening."

Roe Lee ward councillor, Cllr Phil Riley said: “Any incident like this is clearly a concern and luckily I think it’s fairly rare that these things do happen, so obviously we need to keep that in perspective.

“But that said, anyone with information that can help the police would be encouraged to come forward.”

A spokesperson for the ambulance service said: "An ambulance and rapid response vehicle responded to a police incident on Whalley New Road following a 999 call at 07.06am on Thursday.

"We weren’t required to take any patients to hospital."

By midday on Thursday no arrests had been made but police said enquires in the area would remain ongoing.

The spokesperson added: "Although this is believed to be an isolated incident, residents will see an increased police presence in the area."

Earlier on Thursday morning, passers-by and commuters reported seeing a large police presence, with one witness saying the force helicopter had also been spotted.

Heavy traffic was reported around the Brownhill junction and police urged people to avoid the area.

An initial statement from the police said: "We are currently dealing with an ongoing incident in the Whalley New Road area of Blackburn.

"As a result we have closed Emerald Avenue to traffic and are asking the general public to avoid the area for the time being.

"We will update you when the road reopens."

Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call police on 101, quoting log 0233 of October 7.