A teenage girl bled to death after staggering into a pub car park with her throat slashed from ear to ear.

She died in the arms of pub customers who had desperately tried to stop the blood gushing from the gaping wound in her neck.

The pretty 18-year-old blonde died in the car park of the Swan Hotel in Liversedge.

The teenager collapsed into the arms of customer Dave Eccles as he left the pub, and he dashed inside to get help. Mechanic Mark Scott tried to stop the flow of blood with a bath towel, following instructions from ambulance staff on Mr Eccles' phone.

A police officer then tried to revive her until paramedics arrived and continued the lifesaving efforts, but she was pronounced dead at Dewsbury District Hospital. Police confirmed the victim was an 18-year-old girl but have not released her name because they are still trying to contact relatives.

Mr Scott, 38, who works at Rydal car sales in Huddersfield Road, Norristhorpe, Liversedge, told how he had tried to save the girl. He said: "Dave came back in and said he needed help outside.

"We went out and there was a young girl lying there with her throat cut open.

"We got some towels. One friend was holding them to her throat, Dave was taking instruction on the phone from the ambulance people and me and another friend were trying to keep her talking. But she wasn't saying anything, she was just gurgling. We weren't getting any response.

"There was an extreme amount of blood. She had walked a long way in the state she was in and we just tried our best to save her.

"We had seen her walk past the pub earlier and she was a stunning young girl."

In a tragic twist of fate, 31-year-old Cleckheaton mum Rebecca Kemp was found dead from stab wounds outside Mr Scott's place of work last month. A 49-year-old man has been charged with her murder.

Pub licensee Karen Osman, 53, described the frantic efforts to save the teenager.

She said: "She was breathing to begin with but it was getting less and less when the man went to help her. I went outside and she was on the ground, propped against the pub wall.

"The man was on the phone to the ambulance crew who were telling him what to do. We needed a thick, clean cloth to try to stop the bleeding and I fetched a bath towel.

"Another man was holding the towel to her throat, but it was hopeless. I have never seen so much blood. She was saturated in it and you couldn't even tell the colour of her clothes."

Mrs Osman added: "You can see the girl on the CCTV staggering into the car park. She must have seen this man getting into his car and she headed for him.

"The last words she spoke were 'help me'. Then she fell into his arms and didn't speak again. The blood was just pumping out of her. It was just horrendous.

"The police were there very quickly and one officer tried to revive her with mouth-to-mouth resuscitation and chest compression."

Mrs Osman's husband, Christopher, 52, said: "There was just nothing anybody could do. She was never going to come round. She was bleeding profusely from the throat and it was forming a pool under her.

"We hadn't seen her before and don't know where she came from. She was a blonde-hair white girl, wearing a top and skirt.

"The customer tried to staunch the bleeding with a towel for several minutes and then the paramedics took over. It's a terrible thing to happen and it's the second murder round here in a couple of months."

The murder investigation is being carried out by West Yorkshire Police's Homicide and Major Enquiry Team, headed by Detective Superintendent Andy Brennan.

Detectives believe the girl was attacked in Holme Street, which runs behind the pub.

Det Ch Supt Breenan said: "This seems to be a random attack, which is quite worrying.

"The locals I have spoken to are absolutely horrified by what has taken place. A teenager has been attacked in a vicious way. The family are traumatised.

"We do not have a suspect. We are not linking this to any other attacks.

"We have got a huge investigation ongoing and I'm convinced we will be able to catch the person who did this.

"I'm worried that the suspect is still at large but I would provide reassurance to the public by pointing out that there's a heavy police presence in the area."

Police are examining CCTV footage and forensic evidence from the area, particularly the nearby filling station.

The pub, at the junction of Bradford Road and Huddersfield Road, was sealed off yesterday and a white tent was erected in the car park where the girl was found.

A housing estate opposite the pub was also cordoned off and Holme Street, a side road behind the pub was closed. Traffic was being diverted and customers were unable to remove their vehicles from the pub car park. It is thought the girl had been walking in Holme Street before reaching the car park.

The coroner has been informed and a post-mortem examination was being held yesterday.

Police say they are following positive lines of inquiry to trace the person responsible.

Det Supt Brennan urged anyone who saw the girl going towards the pub shortly after 8pm on Thursday to contact them on 0845 6060606, or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

Witnesses can also text information by texting the word swan and sending it to 07786 200 806.

Later, a police spokesman said that a 20-year-old man had been arrested in Liversedge and was being questioned by detectives last night.