Watch: Community's shock at hammer attack on Portsmouth girl

Police are standing guard at the scene of the attack – a terraced house in Shearer Road, Buckland – where a 17-year-old girl was assaulted with a weapon, believed to be a hammer.

Officers were called at 6.58pm yesterday to a report of a serious assault, which left the victim with a serious head injury.

She was taken to Southampton General Hospital, where she remains in a serious but stable condition.

Neighbours have reacted with shock at the news.

Pratik Brahne runs Shearer Convenience Store, on the corner of Hampshire Street, next door to the house involved.

He said he believed the 17-year-old was dog-sitting at the time of the assault, when she opened the door to the attacker.

And he thought another woman and her young daughter were in the house at the time.

He said: ‘All of a sudden this lady came down with her daughter, screaming, shouting “somebody help me, someone has come to my house with a hammer”.’

He went outside and called the police.

Mr Brahne added: ‘It is bad what has happened. We have never had anything like this before in Shearer Road, never.

‘I have been living in Shearer Road for seven years, yes there has been a few scratched windows on cars after a Saturday night but this is bad.’

Other neighbours, who were going about their daily business this morning, said they were shocked.

Collette Webster, 41, from Fratton, said: ‘It is disgusting, It is shocking, especially when there was a kid in there as well.

‘The girl is only 17 years old. I have a 17-year-old daughter myself. It is scary as we don’t know why it has happened.’

Vicky Cleal, 31, from Buckland, said: ‘It is absolutely shocking. You don’t expect it around here.

‘I hope she makes a full recovery and hopefully it never happens around here again.

‘I hope they catch whoever has done it.’

Cllr Steve Hastings, ward councillor for Baffins, saw the air ambulance land on Southsea Common, which was called to assist the girl, but was not needed.

He said: ‘When I saw it I thought “crikey”. There were lots of police cars around. It looked serious.

‘It is horrendous, I thought it must have been pretty nasty but this is something else. What is the world coming to?’

A 51-year-old, who lives opposite, who did not want to be named, said: ‘The dog was fast asleep in the doorway and ran into the back room. Then I went upstairs to my office in the front of the house, and I looked out of the window, and that’s when I could start to see things happening.

‘I know I heard some kind of bang, which drew my attention.

‘I thought someone had just slammed a door.’

A police spokesman said that no arrests had been made, but that officers were continuing to investigate.

He said: ‘Enquiries are ongoing to locate all parties believed to have been involved in the incident.’

Anyone with information should call police on 101, quoting reference 44160137858.

* Did you see anything in Shearer Road last night? Call The News on (023) 9262 2118.