VIDEO footage could hold the key to identifying a man who sprayed a dangerous chemical in the face of a clubber, say police.

Christopher Armstrong, 26, was sprayed in the left eye with an ammonia-type substance on the dance floor at the Trades nightclub, Consett, County Durham, in the early hours of last Sunday.

Doctors fear the courier driver, from Silksworth, Sunderland, could lose the sight in the affected eye.

Detectives from Consett CID have spent the week trawling through tapes from the club's security camera system, and yesterday issued a description of a man they believe could have been responsible for the attack.

The man left the dance floor and the club shortly after 1.45am - moments after Mr Armstrong was attacked.

He is described as being in his late teens or early 20s, between 5ft 8in and 5ft 10in tall, with very short, ginger hair and was wearing a long-sleeved white top.

The officer leading the investigation, Detective Constable Paul Walmsley, said he had been disappointed by the poor response to an appeal for witnesses made earlier this week.

"At that time, the club would have been very busy and the dance floor crowded," he said. "There must be other clubbers who were in Trades last weekend and saw what happened."

Anyone with information is asked to contact Consett CID, on (01207) 504204.