WOMEN in an area where a 17-year-old girl was raped say they are living in fear.

The teenager was attacked after being dragged into an alleyway as she was walking home in Walkden.

The terrified girl eventually managed to escape and used her mobile phone to raise the alarm.

And , as detectives were hunting for the attacker, officers said the girl - who has been treated at the rape referral centre at Manchester's St Mary's Hospital - had been left traumatised by the attack.

The girl was raped shortly after getting off a bus from Manchester. The attacker forced her into the alleyway, off Old Clough Lane, between 10.30pm and 11.10pm, on Tuesday night.

As police officers carried out door-to-door inquiries, residents said they had been left shocked by the incident.

One woman, of Manchester Road, Walkden, said: "I can't believe what has happened and I won't be walking around outside late at night.

"I always thought that living near a main road would keep me safe, but now I'm not so sure."

Another woman, who lives just yards from the spot where the girl was raped, said: "It's a big worry because women don't want to think there is a rapist roaming about the area."

Local councillor Stan Witkowski, who represents Walkden South, said: "It's a terrible shock. The area is quite well lit so it sounds like an opportunist attack. But women should take care when going out at night."

Forensic officers have been combing the area, just off the A6 Manchester Road, in the hunt for clues.

Specially trained officers are continuing to question the girl via a video-link.

The attack happened behind the centre for the National Association for the Relief of Paget's Disease.

Three exits to the alleyways have been cordoned off at Marsh Street, Crompton Street and Old Clough Lane.

A spokesman for Greater Manchester Police said: "Understandably, the victim is in a bad state. It was a nasty attack that has left this young girl traumatised."

Neighbours who live near the alleyway say that it has become a hotspot for trouble over recent months.

Families said their lives are being blighted by gangs who congregate in the ginnels during the evenings and at weekends.