"There was a lot of shouting and commotion on the street. Nobody really knew where it was coming from, it was this loud shouting. It was only when I went outside that I spotted three men running out of Halifax and down the hill. Lots of people stopped in their tracks to have a look, it was quite frightening really." One eyewitness account of last week's bank robbery when three masked men, one armed with a machete, stormed the Halifax in Enniskillen and made off with a small amount of cash.

Arriving just minutes after the theft, it was a scene of panic as members of the public plus staff in adjoining businesses up and down the street gathered in shock. "What was that? What happened?" cried one woman. "There's been a robbery, my work colleague is in there, they won't let her out," shouted another.

In fact, nobody inside Halifax was going anywhere, for it was complete lock down. Staff and customers had to remain exactly where they were while police sealed off the area and began investigating. A member of staff at the bank did leave at one point, but just to place a sign on the door advising the public that the premises was now closed: "That's us out of action for the rest of the day," she said to onlookers.

Initially people on the ground thought that Mercers Jewellers on up the street was robbed as well as their alarm was blaring, causing much speculation.

But this was just a security measure. After being robbed at gun-point two years ago the store was taking no chances. When staff spotted thieves in the street, they sounded their alarm, locked the doors and launched their own safety mechanism - a spray of cloud-like dust which poured over the shop floor.

Back at Halifax, another member of staff did venture out afterwards and looked a little shaken. He said: "I obviously can't say much but we have a lot of very shocked staff inside. The men were armed and asked for money, then left," he said.

Later he admitted it was a "trying time" for the staff who were on the desk: "This has been a shock to the system, not only for Enniskillen but for those girls on the till. I'd love to say X, Y and Z about it but I'm concerned for the safety of myself and the others," he said.

Sources say the thieves, thought to be from Belfast, stole 'a few thousand' in the raid at the High Street premises on Friday morning before jumping into a waiting getaway car nearby. The actual figure is thought to have been just over £2,000, though police have refused to comment on this.

After they robbed the bank, the gang got into a grey Volkswagen Jetta [registration number: WKZ 5076] driven by a fourth male and made their escape along the Shore Road. Minutes later they stopped at the Castle Island adventure park at Quay Lane, where they got into a second car. Both vehicles had been stolen in the greater Belfast area before the theft and had false number plates. This time they left in a silver Toyota Avensis [registration number: SO 05 OGB] and headed straight to Belfast. But after being chased by police the men dumped the Avensis in West Belfast and got away on foot.

Detectives are now hunting for the thieves and are appealing for information. They want to hear from anyone who saw three masked men in the centre of the town before or after they went into the bank at around 10.30am. Particularly as the men drove around the town before they robbed the bank.

Police are also appealing for information about the two cars used by the robbers. A PSNI spokesperson said: "We believe the gang drove from Belfast early on Friday and left the Toyota at Quay Lane, before continuing on to the bank. It's possible that both cars were at Quay Lane for the Toyota to be parked up before the robbery and both were together afterwards while the men transferred to it with the small sum of money they stole. The timeframe we are looking at for the gang to be in Enniskillen is 9am to 11am and we would, like to hear from anyone who saw them or the cars at any time during that period." Anyone with information about the robbery is asked to call 0845 600 8000 or the Crimestoppers charity anonymously on 0800 555 111.