POLICE today pledged to act after being told that clashes between rival gangs in Nelson were in danger of spiralling out of control.

One man was taken to hospital with gunshot wounds following violence involving 20 or 30 young men, which flared in the Bradshaw Street area of town last weekend.

And yesterday afternoon police were called to a shop in Scotland Road after a resident rang to tell officers they had seen a man carrying a gun.

Crown Prosecution Service lawyer Sue Riley highlighted some of the problems during a remand hearing at Burnley magistrates this week.

Miss Riley said there was a real risk the volatile situation in the town could erupt into further violence unless strong measures were put in place by the police to prevent trouble.

She added: "There is considerable concern within the community and the police that violence seems to have escalated in Nelson between rival gangs of young men.

"It may be that the police have to revise their policing strategy for some parts of the town because of the risk of serious violence involving firearms.

"The violence could flare up again and police need to keep a tight leash on the situation."

Inspector for Nelson and Brierfield Paul Robinson said: "It is a fact that within the local community there are a small number of individuals who have the propensity to further violence among themselves and who will arm themselves. We have seen a range of weapons from baseball bats, hockey sticks and cricket bats to occasionally knives and hammers and, very rarely, firearms.

"What makes the situation worse is that the small numbers coming into conflict are swelled by people on the periphery.

"We have been monitoring and been aware of these incidents for some months now and are looking at how we can improve our deployment times.

"The community as a whole must give due consideration to how they can better their community by giving us information about who these people are."

In Nelson town centre yesterday shoppers said gangs of young men were a problem for the town.

One 53-year-old woman, who did not want to be named, said: "Nelson is becoming more violent.

"There are always gangs hanging around somewhere and they can be quite intimidating."

Her friend, a 32-year-old mother from the Walverden area of Nelson added: "It is awful. I don't let my son go to Walverden Park, it's just full of gangs hanging around.

"It can be intimidating when I'm walking past on my own."

A spokesman for Lancashire Constabulary said: "We had a report from someone who said they had seen someone with a gun yesterday. We went to Nelson and arrested a man."

The man was taken to Burnley Police Station where he was due to be interviewed by detectives.

The spokesman added that police would continue to investigate the links between both incidents.