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A grandmother has died after being attacked by two dogs described as XL Bullies while visiting her 11-year-old grandson in Jaywick. <\/p>\n
Essex Police were called to Hillman Avenue shortly after 4pm on Saturday where they found the victim, named by her family as Esther Martin, seriously injured. <\/p>\n
The 68-year-old, from Woodford Green, London, was pronounced dead at the scene. The attack is thought to have involved two XL bully-type dogs.<\/p>\n
Neighbours have described hearing \u201chorrific\u201d screaming from the property lasting 10 minutes.<\/p>\n
A 39-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of dangerous dog offences and is being questioned by detectives.<\/p>\n
The dogs had to be destroyed and police said that experts would confirm their breed later.<\/p>\n
The attack is thought to have involved two XL bully-type dogs<\/p>\n
(Handout)<\/p>\n
The victim\u2019s daughter, Sonia Martin, from Chesterfield, told Mail Online: \u201cThey were XL bullies. There were eight of them in the house, six puppies and two adults.<\/p>\n
\u201cHer grandson was in the house. He came running out shouting for help. We would like to thank all the neighbours who tried to help our mum.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chief Superintendent Glen Pavelin added: \u201cI would also like to thank local people who tried to get into the house to help Esther Martin. You should be proud.\u201d<\/p>\n
A police spokesperson said: \u201cWe have been carrying out inquiries to establish the circumstances which led up to the incident and we believe she had been assaulted by two dogs.\u201d<\/p>\n
The scene is now safe for members of the public, he added.<\/p>\n
Chief Superintendent Glen Pavelin said: \u201cMy thoughts, and those of our officers and staff, are with the family of the woman who died yesterday.<\/p>\n
A police cordon in Hillman Avenue, Jaywick after Esther Martin was killed in a dog attack<\/p>\n
(PA)<\/p>\n
\u201cThis incident will be a huge shock to the community and I understand their concerns.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ll have officers in the area throughout today so please come and speak to them if you have any information or are worried.<\/p>\n
\u201cExperienced detectives are leading the investigation to identify exactly what has happened.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ms Martin, of Chesterfield, Derbyshire, said that her mother had previously expressed concerns about the \u201cdangerous and aggressive dogs\u201d.<\/p>\n
She told the BBC: \u201cThere were adult XL bully dogs in the property, and my mum had raised concerns to the owners about them being dangerous and quite aggressive. There were also six puppies.\u201d<\/p>\n
She said she had been informed that the puppies had started fighting and her mother had been told by the dogs\u2019 owner to \u201cput a broom in among them, to distract them\u201d.<\/p>\n
She said: \u201cThat\u2019s when she was attacked.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ms Martin said that her mother, who was retired but had worked at a Tesco store, had been \u201cgetting her life back together\u201d following the death of another daughter two years ago.<\/p>\n
She added: \u201dIt\u2019s killed our mum and it\u2019s killed our children\u2019s grandmother. I\u2019m getting married in a couple of years and my mum won\u2019t be at that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Paying tribute to officers and local residents, Mr Pavelin said: \u201cWhen six police officers entered the house, their priority was, as always, to keep their community safe.<\/p>\n
\u201cTheir unflinching bravery and professionalism ensured that there is no ongoing threat to the people of Essex, both dogs were destroyed inside the house.<\/p>\n
\u201cI would also like to thank local people who tried to get into the house to help Esther Martin, you should be proud.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mr Pavelin declined to comment on the breed of the dogs which had been destroyed by officers.<\/p>\n
He said: \u201cI know there is speculation about the breed of the dogs involved and we are working with experts to establish this.<\/p>\n
\u201cI would ask you not to speculate, we will establish the facts and we will keep the community of Jaywick updated.\u201d<\/p>\n
He added he had not been informed of any information about previous complaints made about the dogs involved in the incident.<\/p>\n
Mr Pavelin said the suspect, who is from Jaywick, remained in custody for questioning.<\/p>\n
People can contact the force online quoting reference 723 of Saturday, or information can be provided to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emails A grandmother has died after being attacked by two dogs described as XL Bullies while visiting her 11-year-old grandson in Jaywick. Essex Police were called to Hillman Avenue shortly […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2903,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[173],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2902","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n