A POLICE inspector who led the response to the Dreamspace disaster is to retire after nearly 30 years with the same force.

Paul Anderson was the senior officer on duty and approaching the end of his shift when reports started coming in of something awful having happened with the inflatable artwork Dreamspace in Chester-le-Street’s Riverside Park in July 2006.

Two people died and others were injured after the huge structure blew into the air in high winds.

Insp Anderson, then neighbourhood inspector for Chester-le-Street, said: “If it hadn’t been for the actions of the public, there would have been a lot more people dead that day.”

Born in Chester-le-Street, Insp Anderson joined Durham Police in 1985.

After a few years serving his home town, he worked on Sherburn Road Estate, Durham, in the early 1990s when crime was rife and police were often attacked.

Later, he worked preparing files for court cases, as a sergeant in Chester-le-Street and inspector in Derwentside before becoming Chester-le-Street neighbourhood inspector in 2005.

After a year in the force’s partnerships team, he became neighbourhood inspector in Durham in late 2009.

He has led the Safe City initiative, making Durham the safest university city in the UK.

Aged 53, he will retire on Friday (November 14).

“Thirty years ago I walked in thinking I had the best job in the world and I leave thinking I had the best job in the world,” he said.

“When you’re responsible for policing Durham City and all that goes with it – the university, the visitors, the World Heritage Site, the night-time economy, there’s something different all the time. It’s been an honour and a privilege.”

Insp Anderson, who lives in the Chester-le-Street area, plans to spend more time with family and volunteering.