WITNESSES have spoken of their shock after seeing the aftermath of a stabbing as a shirtless man left the Hopmarket in Worcester bleeding from a wound to his abdomen.

A man has been arrested in connection with the incident and another taken to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham though his injuries are not thought to be life-threatening.

A police cordon was put in place at the entrance to the Hopmarket in Worcester and another outside the Citizens Advice Bureau at around 3.15pm today.

One witness said: "It went from zero to 60 in no time. It started with someone shouting. One man came out (of the Hopmarket) with a blatant stab wound.

"He was bleeding from his torso area. If I had been out there rather than in here I would have been quite shaken up.

"But I have lived in Worcester all my life so I'm not really surprised."

She said he swore and questioned the courage of people who carried knives.

He was described as being in his mid 20s or early 30s.

She added: "Lots of people left the scene and meandered away in the direction of McDonald's."

Another witness said: "There was a blonde lady wearing a white top and and she was shouting racist remarks. She was just shouting at people in general.

"A crowd of homeless people gathered. The guy (the man who was stabbed called the woman out) and said 'come down here if you want to fight'. I never saw the lady appear again."

She said the man who was stabbed chased after a group of men, saying 'what did you stab me for?'

She said he was bleeding from the side of his stomach and was not wearing a shirt.

"They all appeared to be inebriated" she added.

A man heard the commotion from inside the Courtyard pub and said the man who had been stabbed was 'shouting his mouth off'.

A woman who works in a nearby business said she thought it began as an argument between two women who both started shouting at each other.

The argument carried on into the Hopmarket and the two women appeared to be squaring up to one another before a group of men came along.

She said: "I heard a lot of swearing and then the police arrived."

A spokesperson for West Mercia Police said: "At about 3.15pm we received a report of a disturbance in the Trinity Street area of Worcester.

"Officers attended and on the Sabrina Bridge found a man with a single puncture wound to his abdomen.

"He has been taken to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital but his injuries are not thought to be life threatening at this time.

"A scene guard is in place in Hopmarket.

A man has been arrested in connection with the incident.

"Officers investigating the incident would like to hear from anyone who witnessed it."

Anyone with information is asked to call West Mercia Police on 101 quoting incident 438S of 30 September.