A city housing estate was closed off by police after a man fell 25ft from a third-storey window following a reported stand-off with officers.

The man, who is in his 20s, was airlifted to King’s College Hospital in London, where he remains in a serious condition after the incident in Canterbury.

Investigators at the Independent Office for Police Conduct are now probing the involvement of officers in the incident ahead of the man’s fall.

Eyewitnesses have told how he climbed scaffolding to reach the roof of a property in the Old Tannery development, at about midday on Sunday.

Joshua Garbutt, 17, who lives opposite, said: “I looked away for a brief second, then heard a loud bang and he had somehow got into the building.

“I saw police with shields come along and break down the front door.

“A few went in, some stayed outside, and others went around the back.

“Next thing, I heard ambulances.”

Emergency services rushed to the scene, with the air ambulance landing on the nearby Victoria Recreation Ground.

Tracey Dobson, who owns the property, was at work when the events unfolded. On returning home she was shocked to find the whole area taped off and her front door battered down by police.

The 41-year-old, who is getting married at Tower House this Saturday, says “tens of thousands of pounds” of damage was caused to her home, where she lives with her fiancé and teenage son.

“My bedroom, hallway, lounge, dining room and kitchen were trashed,” she said.

“It’s just uninhabitable - every single room, apart from my bedroom or bathroom.

“I’ve managed to salvage some bits and pieces, but it’s a complete mess.

“It’s just every single thing - right from the carpet to the ceiling.

“He’s pulled extractors off the walls. There’s blood everywhere. Apparently he was barefooted, with the glass - it just looks like a house of horrors.

“It’s horrible. It’s scary - I just broke down. I couldn’t cry - I wanted to but I couldn’t. I think shock just took over.”

"It's just a nightmarish thing..." Tracey Dobson

Ms Dobson says the young man had already fallen from a landing window before she arrived.

“I don’t know when he fell out,” she said. “I take it it’s after the police tried to get in.”

Old Tannery developer Bellway is housing the family in another property for a couple of months while the damage is fixed.

“They have been brilliant,” said Ms Dobson. “So have my friends and family.

“I was having family stay here on my wedding night. I’ve got my brother coming with his children, and in-laws coming from Southampton and the Cotswolds area.

“I didn’t sleep last night. My partner got up about 4am convinced somebody was trying to get in.

“He came and checked and nobody was here, but it’s just a nightmarish thing.

“You see it on the news, you hear of it on social media, but you sort of don’t expect it to happen to you.”

Police say they were called to the scene in Drying Shed Lane after concerns were raised for the young man’s welfare.

A spokesman said: “Officers attended the location, where the man is reported to have fallen from a window.

“During the incident there was a report of criminal damage to a property and inquiries into the matter are ongoing.

“Due to prior police contact with the man a mandatory referral has been made to the Independent Officer for Police Conduct (IOPC).”

Read more: All the latest news from Canterbury