‘It was havoc’: Customers from nearby pub rushed to help stabbed teenager

Members of the public helped a 17-year-old teenager who was found with stab wounds at the end of a pathway in Bowers Avenue, Norwich. Picture: Archant (Image: Archant)

A 17-year-old man was stabbed in the leg while he was sat in a parked car in Bowers Avenue, near Boundary Road, at 6.20pm.

A police spokesman said the masked perpetrator smashed the passenger window of the car in what is believed to be a targeted attack. The attacker then fled.

Just across Boundary Road, Danny Brown, 43, was at The Whiffler pub when a man ran into the bar shouting that someone had been stabbed and was bleeding.

Mr Brown said the pub was "heaving" with customers at the time and they rushed out to help the young man.

The park close to where a 17-year-old teenager was found with stab wounds to his leg. Picture: Archant (Image: Archant)

"There were people screaming, the manager of the pub got out the first aid kit, it was havoc," he said.

While people helped the teenager and called emergency services, Mr Brown said a passing ambulance was flagged down and they stopped to treat the stab victim.

Police said the teenager's leg was wounded and he was taken to the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital (NNUH) for treatment.

On Friday morning, the neighbourhood close to the scene of the assault was wary about opening their front door to callers.

A 17-year-old teenager was stabbed in Bowers Avenue, Norwich. Picture: Archant (Image: Archant)

One woman in Bowers Avenue, who did not want to be named, said: "I'm a bit shaken but there is crime wherever you go.

"You never imagine it would happen so close to your doorstep."

Another woman in the area pointed to the spot where the man was found lying on the ground bleeding - at the end of a path next to a small children's park.

One man who lived in one of the six houses that lined the path said the park was normally busy.

"There's always a lot of noise coming from there, of the kids playing," he said.

He said news of the stabbing did not surprise him. "It's now become a part of modern living," he added. "It just seems knife crime is going up."

NHS figures show there were fewer than seven admissions for stab wounds at the NNUH in 2018/2019, which has reduced from around 15 the year before.

Anyone with information on the Bowers Avenue attack should contact police on 101 quoting incident number 353 of January 16.