TWO men have been arrested after blocking the entrance to the Kirby Misperton gas well-site.

The Kirby Misperton Protectors group said that they arrived at around 4am with a lock-on device.

As the lock-on was moved into place, there appears to have been a confrontation involving police, protestors and private security staff.

A police statement said: "Four vehicles containing about 15 people attended the hydraulic fracturing site at 4am this morning and unloaded the metal device, believed to be a propane gas canister.

"A police officer, one of two officers at the scene at the time, was pushed to the ground by a group of people and suffered an ankle injury after the device was pushed onto his foot.

"A security guard, a man in his 40s, sustained a bite injury to his hand during the incident."

Following the incident, two men managed to lock themselves onto the road where they remained for several hours.

They were cut out and arrested at around 12pm, and checked by ambulance staff at the scene.

A 23-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of assaulting a police officer and obstructing the highway.

The other was taken to hospital for treatment for high blood pressure.

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Referring to the incident in the early hours, superintendent Alisdair Dey of North Yorkshire Police, said: "A police officer and a member of the public have been injured in this incident.

"This kind of behaviour is completely unacceptable, and will be investigated thoroughly and dealt with appropriately.

"Our officers are there to support and protect people engaged in peaceful protest, and the safety of everyone at the site remains our priority."

However, the KM Protectors group said "police and security acted recklessly."

The group added they are calling for calm, with a spokesperson saying: "Our actions are always peaceful, at no point do we wish to enter into any kind of confrontation with the police or security."

'Locking-on' is a protest technique where demonstrators lie on the road and lock their arms inside a large, heavy pipe, often metal or concrete, so they cannot be moved.

This is the third lock-on in the last week.

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Man arrested on Friday charged

Meanwhile, police have said that a 21-year-old man has been charged with obstructing a police officer.

He was arrested at Habton Road, Kirby Misperton, at about 11.30am on Friday, September 29.

He will appear at York Magistrates Court in November.