TWO paramedics have been threatened with a knife while on shift.

The pair were in Riverview Court, Vange, when they were approached by a man in his 60s.

He pulled a knife on the team and threatened them, before they quickly called from assistance from Essex Police.

The East of England Ambulance Service did not provide further details on the incident, despite being contacted by the Echo.

However, one of the paramedics took to Twitter to describe his shock at the incident.

He wrote: “We do not come to work to fear violence.

“A male pulled a knife on my crew mate and I whilst on shift in Basildon on Thursday August 30.

“We have a zero tolerance policy on this and I thank Essex Police for their prompt assistance.

“Everyone is safe and well following the incident.”

Following the incident, the paramedic has received backing from a range of representatives throughout the emergency services.

Former CEO of the East of England Ambulance Service, Robert Morton showed his support for the team after they had been threatened.

Mr Morton said: “This is totally unacceptable that our people are subjected to this type of violence, aggression or abuse.

“Thankfully, both of the team members are okay and there was a great response from our emergency colleagues at Essex Police.”

The statement was one of Mr Morton’s last acts as CEO of the service, after he announced his resignation from the trust the following day.

A spokesman for Unison, said: “This is sadly something our members continue to experience.

“We will offer support to the East of England Ambulance Service in how together we can work to make things safe for our members and all our staff.

“Thank you Essex Police for coming to their assistance.”

Essex Police confirmed their officers did attend the incident quickly after the threats had been made.

A spokesman for Essex Police, said: “We were called shortly before 6pm on Thursday August 30 with reports a 64-year-old man had threatened paramedics at an address in Riverview Court, Vange.

“Officers attended.

“He was interviewed under caution and enquiries are ongoing.”

The incident is the second where emergency service workers have been threatened with a knife this year.

In August, The Echo reported 22-year-old Abdi Abdirazak, from London was sentenced to four years for two counts of possession with intent to supply Class A drugs, as well as threatening to stab a police officer and spitting at them during his arrest.