- By Louise Parry, Richard Knights and Nicola Haseler
- BBC News, Essex
Watch: Esther Martin’s daughter instructed the BBC how neighbours tried to assist
A girl killed in an attack by dogs was visiting her grandson for the weekend, her household have mentioned.
Esther Martin, 68, died on the scene of the attack in Jaywick, close to Clacton-on-Sea, Essex, on Saturday afternoon.
A 39-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of harmful canine offences and the animals have been destroyed.
Ms Martin’s daughter instructed the BBC the animals have been banned XL bully dogs however police mentioned they have been ready for the breed to be confirmed by specialists.
Sonia Martin mentioned her mom had been visiting her 11-year-old grandson from her home in Woodford Green, London, on the time of the attack.
Ms Martin, 47, described how her nephew “ran out of the home screaming for assist” and mentioned some neighbours grabbed spades to attempt to “battle off” the dogs.
“We’d actually prefer to thank all of the neighbours for coming and serving to and making an attempt to save lots of my mum’s life,” she added.
“My concern was if my nephew hadn’t run out of the home what may have then occurred to him? He’s 11.”
Image supply, Family Handout
Esther Martin’s household mentioned she was the sufferer of what was an XL bully canine attack within the seaside village
Ch Supt Glen Pavelin, from Essex Police, mentioned the suspect’s relationship to Ms Martin – who was a grandmother of eight and great-grandmother of three – was “familial”.
Ms Martin described how she obtained a knock on the door from a neighborhood police officer at her home in Chesterfield, Derbyshire, at 22:00 GMT, informing her that her mom was critically damage.
“There have been grownup XL bully dogs within the property, and my mum had raised considerations to the homeowners about them being harmful and fairly aggressive,” she mentioned.
“There have been additionally six puppies.”
Ms Martin mentioned she believed the puppies had been preventing, and that her mom had been instructed by the canine’s proprietor earlier to “put a brush in amongst them, to distract them”.
“That’s when she was attacked,” she mentioned.
Image supply, Richard Knights/BBC
Neighbours in Hillman Avenue described listening to screaming and a person shouting to name the police
Lucy Shaw, 38, who lives close by, instructed the PA Media information company that she heard screaming.
“We went out into the backyard and it was all quiet after which we heard dogs barking, after which somebody screaming,” she recalled.
“We went again in after some time as a result of it sounded horrific.”
‘Hollering and shouting’
Mike Coleman, 74, who lives a number of doorways down, mentioned he noticed a person coming down the street to the tackle and shouting.
He mentioned: “He begins whacking on the home windows. He appeared panicked and mentioned ‘cellphone the police’.
“My spouse phoned them and minutes later the police got here – two automobiles, then three then 5, after which they blocked the street off.
“I heard the photographs of them being destroyed, then that was it.”
His spouse Julie Coleman, 67, mentioned the person they noticed shouting “mentioned there was a girl contained in the property who was being attacked by two dogs”.
“He was hollering and shouting ‘they’re XL bullies’,” she remembered.
Image supply, Ed Schooling
Crowds watched as a helicopter took off from the Jaywick Sands seaside
Ch Supt Pavelin praised the six officers who entered the home for “their swift actions”.
“Their unflinching bravery and professionalism ensured that there isn’t any ongoing menace to the folks of Essex on account of this incident,” he continued.
“Both dogs have been destroyed inside the home.
“I might additionally prefer to thank the native individuals who had tried to get into the home to assist Esther Martin. You must be proud.”
Ms Martin mentioned her mom was “getting her life again collectively” following the dying of one other daughter two years in the past.
“She beloved going out on day journeys, the coaches have been her favorite – she truly had a pair booked with one among her nieces,” she recalled.
Her mom, she mentioned, had labored at Tesco in Leyton, east London, however retired at in regards to the time of her daughter’s dying.
She mentioned the canine attack had robbed their entire household.
“It’s killed our mum and it is killed our kids’s grandmother. I’m getting married in a few years and my mum will not be at that.”
Essex Police thanked individuals who had come to “pay tribute” to Esther Martin
Police forensics officers might be seen coming into the property in Jaywick
Ch Supt Pavelin added: “Our ideas stay with everybody affected by what has occurred.
“I’ve seen the flowers laid down for Esther Martin, as have my officers. I want to thank all those that have come collectively to pay tribute to her.”
He urged anybody with data to get in contact or communicate to officers on the scene.
What are XL bully dogs and what’s the legislation?
The authorities described them as massive dogs “with a muscular physique and blocky head, suggesting nice energy and energy for (their) dimension”.
In England and Wales, the breed has been added to the checklist of dogs banned beneath the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991. It means breeding, promoting or abandoning them is against the law.
To get a Certificate of Exemption, permitting homeowners to maintain their XL bullies, they should get insurance coverage, neuter their canine, and pay a price of £92.40.
American XL bully dogs should be stored on a lead and muzzled in public.
Scotland has additionally introduced a ban, which can come into pressure later within the 12 months.
