ARMED police today brought a peaceful end to a siege in which a woman was held hostage for 16 hours.

Officers negotiated the release of Vanessa Davies, 35, who had been dragged into a first-floor flat at Frosthole Close, Fareham, at 4.30pm yesterday.

At 8.45am today she was released unharmed by a 34-year-old man, believed to be her former boyfriend.

The captor eventually released Ms Davies before walking out of the block of flats unarmed and with his hands in the air.

She was described as "very, very distressed" and has undergone a thorough medical examination.

Ms Davies, who is thought to live in the Frosthole Close flat, was reunited with her 12-year-old daughter, who was trapped in another nearby flat during the ordeal.

Police had been unable to free the girl as they feared the hostage-taker would be panicked if they approached too close.

James Faithfull, 37, the father of the 12-year-old girl, was on the scene throughout the siege.

Today he spoke of his relief that it had been ended peacefully.

He said: "I was absolutely terrified but I'm so relieved it's all over. We've been here all night. We are absolutely relieved and the police have done a terrific job. We can't thank them enough. They were spot on."

The release came after an overnight stand-off following what police described as "a domestic situation gone wrong".

The man who brought the siege to an end has spoken of his relief that no one was injured.

Supt Graham Haycock spoke to the Daily Echo after trained negotiators from his 32-strong team had secured Ms Davies' release.

Supt Haycock, the firearms trained divisional commander for Fareham, said: "I'm really pleased that we have been able to resolve this without harm to anybody.

"This was a great team effort. We dealt with it in a serious and professional way.

"I'm so glad it has been resolved with the safe release of the woman.

"A lot of people worked really hard to make sure nobody was injured."

Police were called after reports of a knife wielding man dragging a woman across the street at 4.30pm yesterday.

The knifeman claimed throughout that he also had a firearm and brandished a weapon at police from under a blanket.

Officers and police dogs and their handlers from Surrey Constabulary were drafted in to help with the incident named Operation Midgeholme.

Forensic teams are now carrying out a thorough search, but no weapon has yet been recovered.

After the search is completed stranded residents were able to return to their homes.

Meanwhile the man has been taken Fareham police station where he is being interviewed.

Officers lifted the police cordon around Frosthole Close just before 11am today.

Two police negotiators had held intermittent talks with the man through a window from 6.30pm onwards in an attempt to coax him out while members of the woman's family looked on from beyond the police cordon.

Distraught relatives and the distressed woman who witnessed the hostage-taking were comforted by a family liaison officer and vicar at the scene.

As darkness fell, a coach arrived to take any stranded residents to Ferneham Hall although most people who were unable to return to their homes in the immediate vicinity of the hostage siege stayed with family and friends.

The tactical firearm team, an ambulance, a specialist incident support unit and more than a dozen police vehicles were all called to the scene during the evening.

Police officers in bullet-proof vests surrounded the flat.

Tension rose just after 12.30am when two men and a woman thought to be known to Ms Davies and two men thought to be known to the hostage-taker began shoving each other before being separated by police.