Cessnock siege: Tactical police swarm a unit block amid reports of a hostage situation

By ASHLEY NICKEL, NEWS REPORTER, AUSTRALIA Published: 08:46, 13 April 2026 | Updated: 08:59, 13 April 2026 An ongoing police operation has seen heavy armour vehicles line a street in a small town in the Hunter Valley. A large police presence was seen outside an apartment block on Cooper St in Cessnock, about 160km northwest of Sydney, on Monday afternoon. 'A police operation is underway in Cessnock,' NSW Police said in a statement. 'There are no threats to the public. 'Further information will be released at an operationally appropriate time.' Local MP Dan Repacholi urged locals to 'please avoid the area'.  No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.