ARMED police laid siege to a house for more than four hours yesterday before bursting through the door to find only a dog.

The operation was mounted after reports that a gunman had made threats to kill a villager during a dispute.

Durham Police's Tactical Firearms Unit, backed up by the force dog section, the police helicopter and about 20 uniformed officers, moved into the small village of Grange Villa, near Chester-le-Street, County Durham, at about 10am.

They surrounded a terraced house in West Street and cordoned off the area, ordering residents to stay indoors.

The police called for the occupants to come out but there was no response from inside the building.

After a stand-off, police chiefs gave the order and armed officers moved in through the front door.

A force spokeswoman said: "At around 2.30pm, police did a search of the building and found there was nobody inside, so the operation was scaled down.

"It came to a quick conclusion once the team went in. They made a search and found a dog in one of the rooms."

A second team of specialists moved in looking for forensic evidence, once the armed unit had made sure the house was safe.

The road was blocked at both ends with police cars, but curious villagers gathered in nearby Front Street to try and catch a glimpse of the operation.

The police spokeswoman last night said the operation was necessary as part of investigations into a suspected firearms incident.

"There was an incident in a neighbouring village on Wednesday and we thought the person involved might be in that house today," she said.

"The house was empty, but the operation to find this person is still ongoing."

A man was arrested in the Grange Villa area on Wednesday and a 26-year-old woman was arrested in the village yesterday morning, on suspicion of making threats to kill.

Both are still being questioned by detectives at Durham City police station.