Police storm house to end 16 hour Launceston siege and arrest a man and a woman after 33 gunshots fired overnight
- Police stormed house in Launceston and brought 16 hour standoff to an end
- Armed officers escorted a woman, 47, then a man, 24, from the home
- Up to 33 shots were fired overnight on Friday and 14 residents evacuated
- Police managed to end the tense standoff without anyone suffering injury
Police have stormed a house in northern Tasmania and brought a 16 hour standoff to an end.
Armed officers escorted a woman, 47, and a man, 24, from the home at the Trevallyn suburb in Launceston on Saturday morning.
Police earlier said the pair were in talks with negotiators to surrender peacefully, since the standoff began at 4.30pm on Friday, ABC reported.
They confirmed no-one was injured, despite up to 33 shots fired and residents in the surrounding area being evacuated.
The house is the same New World Avenue address where a woman was found with a gunshot wound to the leg on Wednesday.
Police have stormed a house in northern Tasmania and brought a 16 hour standoff to an end
Armed officers escorted a woman, 47, and a man, 24, from the home at the Trevallyn suburb in Launceston on Saturday morning
Police confirmed on Saturday morning that 33 shots were fired overnight and 14 nearby residents have been evacuated, with no-one injured
Tasmania Police Commander Brett Smith said in a statement a speedy and tactical response was made once it became apparent the woman's life might be in jeopardy.
'It was always our intention to resolve the situation peacefully and we were committed to using a range of strategies and resources to manage a peaceful resolution.
'However, there came a point where police were of the strong view that the woman's life was in imminent danger.'
Commander Smith said the standoff had taken its toll on everyone involved.
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'Especially the residents and the attending emergency services.
'The residents can be reassured that their suburb will be returned to normality shortly.'
He earlier told the ABC about 34 police officers had been deployed to deal with the situation at any one time.
'We're pretty well resourced for this particular type of incident, and we see this as something that is unnecessary, but we're more than adequate and capable of providing the necessary response,' he said on Saturday.
Tasmania Police Commander Brett Smith said in a statement a speedy and tactical response was made once it became apparent the woman's life might be in jeopardy
He said police had a range of specialty units that provided front-line support, including members of the Special Operations Group and the bomb response group.
'Police are attempting to negotiate with both the occupants to a peaceful resolution,' he said at the time of the standoff.
'This will be our strategy going forward.'
Detective Inspector Philippa Burk had told The Mercury that police had negotiators in place to peacefully resolve the situation.
'At this point in time we are not treating it as a hostage situation,' she said on Friday night.
'My best advice to both of them is to surrender, put the gun down ... and hand yourself in to police.'
A number of nearby homes were evacuated as a precaution and police advised members of the public to avoid the Reatta Road area until further notice.
Tasmania Police Commander Brett Smith told the ABC about 34 police officers had been deployed to deal with the situation at any one time
A number of nearby homes were evacuated as a precaution and police advised members of the public to avoid the Reatta Road area in Tervallyn (pictured) until further notice
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