Police have launched a murder investigation after a man was stabbed to death in Croydon, south London, part of an outbreak of violence that has left at least nine more people injured. Metropolitan police officers responded to five reports of stabbings at five locations across Croydon in just over two hours between 6.56pm and 9.12pm on Friday. One of two men stabbed at a property in Wisbeach Road died at the scene despite the emergency services’ efforts to save him. He has been named locally as Lavz, 22. The other had been taken to hospital prior to police arriving. Officers were making door-to-door inquiries on Saturday as forensics experts investigated. A resident said: “They tried really hard to save him but there was a lot of blood. There was blood everywhere, it looked like he was cut in the leg and they tried to stop the bleeding. “My husband was outside for 45 minutes and said his stepdad showed up. His mum was here crying and she was in pieces. It is terrifying, my son is 19 and I’m worried for him.” The Met said a group of males came to the address and the 22-year-old was stabbed in an ensuing altercation. His family came to the scene on Saturday but were too upset to talk to the media. Of the nine males wounded in all the incidents across the borough, none sustained life-threatening injuries, despite initial reports to the contrary. The Met said two people had been arrested, both relating to a stabbing in Dingwall Road at about 9.12pm. A man in his 40s was taken to hospital for treatment and subsequently arrested on suspicion of affray. Another man, 38, was arrested on suspicion of causing grievous bodily harm. The other incidents occurred on Chapman Road in Thornton Heath; Penwortham Road, Streatham; and Jay Gardens in Chislehurst. Lucy Martindale, founder of Operation Shutdown, a campaign group supporting bereaved families, has been providing support to the family of the deceased victim. She told MyLondon: “It’s devastating. You can imagine how all those families will be feeling today. Their lives will never be the same again. We keep having to say RIP to the victims until the next week when the next stabbing happens. People are getting too desensitised to it all. We can’t let it happen.” The force said there was not yet any evidence to suggest all the stabbings were connected and that they were being treated as isolated incidents. Three of the incidents occurred within 1.5 miles of West Croydon station, one of the most violent police “microbeats” in the capital. A new violence suppression unit was set up for the area in an attempt to make sure serious crime did not return to pre-lockdown levels after a steep fall following the imposition of restrictions. The Met’s gold commander, Ade Adelekan, said extra resources had been deployed in Croydon. “While work continues to investigate the motivation and circumstances of these four incidents, I can say that they are being treated as isolated,” he said. “However, that does not make this series of violent incidents any less shocking and I understand that residents in and around the areas where these incidents occurred will be rightly concerned.” Police were granted additional section 60 powers to stop and search people without suspicion until Saturday morning. Det Supt Nicky Arrowsmith said: “Sadly, tonight we have seen a number of needless and completely abhorrent violent altercations, including one that has tragically resulted in a loss of life.” She urged anyone with information to come forward as soon as possible. “Tackling violent crime in London remains the top priority for everyone in the Metropolitan police service,” she said. “We have dedicated resources working to prevent, deter and tackle violence in all its forms, day and night and are utilising all available tactics and powers.” She said the force would not be able to do so alone and needed to work closely with local communities to tackle violence. She called on anyone with information about crime, including people carrying weapons, to contact the police. The local MP, Labour’s Steve Reed, tweeted: “Absolutely horrific news that will devastate our community – thoughts with all those injured, and with the police and medical staff dealing with the situation.”