Two Police officers were injured with one needing stitches after a mob attacked them during a night of violence in the city of Hamilton during the early hours of yesterday morning.

Trouble flared outside Escape night club on Par-La-Ville Road at around 3.35 a.m. on the club's last night of business, but Police said the disturbance had stopped by the time they got there.

Violence then spilled over across the street to the Esso TigerMart, where two men fought each other.

Police again attended and stayed until the crowd had dispersed, but the same two men were then seen fighting outside Tiffany's 24 hours store on Court Street.

Police tried to arrest the two from a hostile crowd of around 50 people, but three other men jumped in to stop them.

The canine unit arrived and a Police dog was let loose, but the mob responded with a hail of bottles and other missiles.

A rear windscreen on a Police car was smashed while two other Police cars were damaged.

Police spokesman Robin Simmons said: "One Sergeant needed stitches on his forehead while a constable suffered lacerations to the bridge of his nose."

A 19-year-old Pembroke man and a 20-year-old St. George's man were arrested for fighting in public while a 22-year-old St. George's man has been arrested for assaulting Police.

Police spokesman Dwayne Caines denied Police were inadequately staffed to deal with the incidents.

He said: "The crowd was throwing bottles and anything they could get their hands on.

"It was a very, very hostile situation. We had a full compliment of officers from the Police Support Unit and officers from Hamilton.

"We will find those involved and prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law."

One eyewitness said he saw the fight at the gas station.

He said: "A car came in the wrong way and a guy told the driver he had come in the wrong way and that he had almost hit a girl.

"Then they started fighting."

Esso TigerMart manager Richard Tannock refused to comment on the fight but one source said the gas station had closed for an hour after the fight.

Escape nightclub owner Paul DeCouto said the fight had nothing to do with his establishment, which closed its doors this weekend after a controversial history.

He said: "It was a good night, there was a good turn out and there was no trouble."

Around $4,000 was raised to pay for the medical expenses of former Escape barman Matthew Greenslade who suffered brain injuries during a Labour Day bike smash.

Mr. DeCouto said efforts to sell the lease had floundered because he didn't want to sell it to someone with no experience in nightclub management and risk an escalation of violence for the landlord.

However, he said one bid was still on the table but a deal would have to be done by this afternoon, before he turned his lease back over.

Mr. DeCouto said of the applicant: "He's been in the business for a long time and might be able to do something with it."

Mr. DeCouto has owned The Escape for five years but it has had trouble with violence, drugs and an alleged strip show.

He renovated the entrance to improve security, improved security with guests being searched by security officers, who numbered 16 on busy nights, but closed the club three months ago after worsening violence before reopening for Saturday night's final hurrah.

Mr. DeCouto said: "When you can't serve human beings glasses but you have to use plastics there is something wrong."

He said a lot of young guys were looking to the wrong type of role models and falling into drug dealing gangs who were fighting turf wars across the Island.

M.R. Onions landlord Phil Talbot who has shared the premises with Escape said last night: "God, I am so glad Escape is closing."