RESIDENTS of a vandal-plagued community could be forced to seek help from a private security squad.

After the latest wrecking spree in Marske, when even firemen were stoned as they tackled a shop which had been set alight, they felt the time had come to fight back.

At the parish council this week, Coun Bill Goodwill said it was a riot and a senior police officer should have been at the meeting to say what was going to be done about it.

Instead, PC Derek Taylor, after just a few weeks as the village community policeman, had to take the flak from angry councillors, who have been demanding action against mounting anti-social behaviour.

He said three arrests had been made, but no-one had been charged so far. He said witnesses were reluctant to give names and this hampered inquiries. He urged people to come forward with names.

Coun John Coulthard said shopkeepers who had suffered the criminal damage could not keep on meeting the cost and some were considering closure.

PC Taylor said Marske had been highlighted as a hot spot but, with CCTV coming on-line, a community warden and the police, there would be a strong positive influence.

Coun Coulthard said he had served on many councils, with police committees, and for 20 years all he had heard from police officers up to the rank of chief constable was "things will get better".

Coun Margaret Goodwill said there was a no-drinking zone, yet these youngsters, some aged ten or 12, were drinking from early evening until 11.30 at night, particularly on Fridays.

"They were stoned out of their minds and didn't know what they were doing when committing offences. The village is going to the dogs."

Coun Sheila Argument said Marske's problems were getting worse, and the police were not coping. "I'm accustomed to dealing with young people in clubs but now they are getting vicious. It makes me jittery."

Councillors said people in Marske were tired and frustrated, scared to even walk down the street, and there was talk in the community about chipping in £1 a head to bring in a private security firm.

Coun Jim Wingham said the next thing would be vigilantes.

"The chief constable will have to do something," he added