POLICE in protective gear hacked their way through two doors with chainsaws during two simultaneous shock and awe drugs raids in Droitwich.

Officers stormed two houses in Swan Drive, Droitwich at 2.20pm today although neither of the suspects were in at the time and no drugs were found.

West Mercia Police's Task Force used the chainsaws to cut out a hole in the doors before battering rams called enforcers were used to smash their way all the way in during the lightning-fast raids.

Both properties were within a few yards of each other and the raids follow intelligence supplied by the local community who do not want to see drugs on their doorstep.

Glass shattered, spraying shards onto the path as the chainsaw ripped through one of the doors, grinding on the door chain before officers were able to enter one of the homes within seconds, battering it in.

One neighbour emerged in a dressing gown to survey one of the damaged doors. She had been having a nap when police burst through.

The raids involved 25 officers from Task Force, Pro-active CID, local policing teams and the Integrated Offender Management team.

DI Stuart Murphy said: "We do respond to the concerns of the local community and we try and focus our activity on those people in the community who are suspected of dealing controlled drugs.

"When you get people dealing drugs it brings anti-social behaviour in the area and misery to those who have to live nearby.

"We want to send out a clear message that we will act on intelligence, act on community concerns and stop people dealing drugs."

Although no drugs were found and no arrests were made, officers did seize a small quantity of clothing which they believed to be stolen. Investigations will now be launched to discover whether the clothing is stolen.

The raids were popular with members of the community.

One man, a co-ordinator of Neighbourhood Watch who did not wish to be named, said: "We have worked for a long time with the police on intelligence from our neighbourhood on the estate here.

"It is unusual to see two warrants on the estate. It has been going on for a while but the police can only act when they have sufficient intelligence.

"We use CCTV a lot on the estate. This is a strong Neighbourhood Watch area. It is best for people involved in drugs to avoid us. It is not accepted here. We are the eyes and ears of the police."

Officers, including PC Tony Carter, a local policing officer for east Droitwich, and PC Paul Cound dropped off 50 leaflets explaining to the community what had happened and reminding them that police would respond to community concerns.

PC Carter said: "This has sent a clear message to drug dealers that their activities will not be tolerated.

"Tackling drugs and drug-related crime is a high priority for the force and your safer neighbourhood team is working with a range of people, including a specialist unit, to help tackle any problems."

Sandie Hale, a police dog handler, and sniffer dog Charlie, a Staffordshire bull terrier Labrador cross, then carried out a search of the two houses and the surrounding area, looking for any drugs which may have been concealed.