THE people of Redcar are under no illusions about what it will mean if their town's steel works closed.

"Close those works and this town is dead," said Redcar traffic warden and son of a steelworker Rob Scott. "It doesn't look good, but while we've a chance, we've hope."

With that he sums up the view of local people as they take stock after Corus's announcement that Teesside steel must look after itself.

The people of East Cleveland - where about 60 per cent of the entire Teesside steel workforce live - know that the local works at Redcar, Lackenby and Hartlepool must compete with cheaper producers of steel in China and Russia to survive.

It is a body blow at a time when steel is being stockpiled around the world - and a tough reward for becoming the cheapest and most efficient makers of steel in the UK.

Union leaders have pointed out that Teesside's two-year stay of execution is just enough time for a £200m upgrade of Welsh and South Yorkshire plants to be completed and Teesside to become surplus to requirements.

"This is a disaster," said Bob McKenzie, who has lived in Redcar since 1974. "We've had decades of decline. I remember when the place was alive, the clubs full of people and when there was plenty of money about. That's all gone, but we survived. This time will be harder."

It was a view echoed by Redcar pensioner Joan Herbert and Dormanstown youngster Scott McKenzie.

However, Sylvia Blakemore, manager of the Crown and Anchor pub, was even more pessimistic. She said: "Redcar is dying now. Without Corus there really is nothing. It is a ridiculous decision by Corus."

It is a familiar story for the people of Consett in North-West Durham, who fought and lost a long battle to save their steelworks. The town survived, despite 4,000 jobs going at closure in 1980 along with about another 6,000 in the years before and after.

That tallies with estimates that about 10,000 would go across Teesside if the works close, due to the knock-on effect on dependent companies.

But some analysts believe that Teesside is in a better shape to withstand the works being closed than it might have been 20 years ago.

Stephen James, senior lecturer in economics at Teesside University, points out that the area survived 20,000 jobs being lost from steel in the early 1980s. This time unemployment is lower and there is much more diversity.

Rob McCullen, of the North-East Chamber of Trade, has surveyed a number of businesses dependent to greater or lesser degrees on Corus. He found that many had diversified or found new markets since the last major Corus scare two years ago. However, he did stress that everything possible must to done to prevent steel being lost.

And Redcar MP Vera Baird, also stressed that the fight must be taken to the new senior management at Redcar. "There's a real danger we could lose the works but our workers are the best and we are not without hope," she said.