HOPES were raised on June 16, 2008 that the deadlock in the fuel tanker drivers' dispute could be broken following a day in which the impact of the strike began to bite.

Several filling stations in the North-East were closed and others across the region began rationing petrol supplies.

Unite, which represented more than 600 drivers at two haulage firms who delivered fuel to Shell garages, announced on June 15, 2008 that fresh talks would be held between union representatives and management in an attempt to solve a row over pay.

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The drivers walked out on Friday, June 13, 2008, and were not due to return to work until Tuesday, June 17, 2008, having mounted picket lines at about 14 terminals and fuel sites across the UK.

Shell said that about 249 of its sites were affected by shortages to one or more of its fuel grades because of the strike.

Meanwhile, the Government said 647 petrol stations out of the UK's 8,700 were affected in one way or another, including the Shell garages.

The Shell station in Woodland Road, Darlington, which had been closed since the end of the previous week, said it was not expecting any more deliveries until the following week.

Steve Gale, from the BP filling station, in Carmel Road South, Darlington, said: "People are panicking, and that is what's caused this situation."

Police were hunting a gang of masked men who firebombed a building, destroying several businesses and bringing a town to a standstill, in June 2008.

More than 50 firefighters from across County Durham converged in Front Street, Stanley, to tackle the blaze in the former Co-op building.

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A police spokesman said that shortly before 3am on June 17, 2008, a white Transit-type van was seen pulling up near the building.

Three people got out and what was believed to be an incendiary device was thrown into the building.

The van was later found burned out in Rose Avenue, Stanley, about 900 metres from the fire. The two-storey building housed a furniture shop, electrical shop, travel agent and snooker club, all of which were destroyed.