The victim of a weekend stabbing was last night air-evacuated abroad for further treatment a hospital spokesperson said.

And Police have confirmed a group of men were present at the scene of the stabbing which left the 17-year-old Sandys teen with "serious stab wounds" to his upper body.

The teenager was in the King Edward VII Memorial Hospital Intensive Care Unit where his condition was "satisfactory and stable" at the weekend before deteriorating yesterday afternoon.

He suffered stab wounds in an incident at a bus stop in Middle Road, Southampton, across from Traditions Restaurant at 12 noon on Saturday.

A 17-year-old from St. George's was arrested at the nearby Traditions restaurant, after allegedly contacting the Police himself. He has since been released on bail.

And the father of the St. George's teen yesterday called The Royal Gazette claiming that his son was acting in self-defence.

He claimed his son was defending himself after being set upon and hit several times with a crash helmet. The father claimed his son took the knife of one of his assailants and stabbed the victim. Similar claims were made by a witness in yesterday's newspaper.

He went on to say that his son had been on the phone with his mother when he was attacked. Because she only lives a short distance from Traditions Restaurant, she rushed to the scene to see what had happened to her son, he said.

According to reports, a passer-by took the injured Sandys teen to Port Royal Fire Station where he was treated by an off-duty firefighter. He was then taken to hospital by ambulance.

He is said to work part-time at the Port Royal gas station and was on a break when the incident happened.

Witnesses suggest a confrontation took place at the bus stop between the two 17-year-olds.

A Police spokesman said it is understood two other men were also present at the scene.

"The altercation apparently involved two men in addition to the suspect and victim," he said.

"It is unknown if it is gang related at this time."

He could not confirm whether a knife had been retrieved.

"Inquiries into the matter are ongoing; we do not generally release information regarding evidence in ongoing investigations," he said.

Witnesses and motorists in the area at the time of the incident are asked to contact the Western Criminal Investigation Unit on 234 1010.