Man shot by armed police in Great Dunmow Published duration 2 September 2015

image caption Part of Great Dunmow is sealed off following the incident on Tuesday night

A man has been shot by armed police in Essex following reports he was carrying two firearms.

Essex Police said officers were called to Knights Way in Great Dunmow at about 22:00 BST on Tuesday.

The man, who was left with leg injuries, is the first person to be shot by Essex officers in more than 30 years, the head of the force confirmed.

A police spokesman said a 48-year-old man from Great Dunmow had been arrested in relation to firearms offences.

The shooting has been referred to the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC).

Chief Constable Stephen Kavanagh said it had been 31 years since Essex Police last shot someone.

image caption Police were shouting "put the gun down", a resident said

"My officers train incredibly well for this. We'll give this to the IPCC. It's right that when we do shoot someone, we get held to account," he said.

He added officers did not believe the incident was connected to anything else, and people living in Great Dunmow "need to be reassured we've got it all under control".

A Great Dunmow resident, who did not wish to be named, said they heard "car brakes screaming like skidding on the road" on Tuesday night.

"I heard the police shouting 'put the gun down' a few times, and then heard a gunshot.

"I'm a bit shaken up I guess - you don't expect it to happen in Dunmow."

At the scene

BBC Essex reporter Richard Smith

Behind a police cordon in North Street, police officers with rubber gloves are kneeling in the road in a row and conducting a fingertip search.

A section of road about 200m long has been sealed off with blue and white police tape at picturesque Market Square.

The shops are open but shoppers in the area are outnumbered by police.

A woman who saw it happen told us she heard a lot of commotion after going to bed, and saw the man fall to the ground after he was shot.

She said at first she'd thought he was dead, but then heard him groaning when he was put on a stretcher.