Thousands
of people defied advice to stay away from beaches and flocked to the south
coast of England as the country experiences a bout of exceptionally hot
weather. The masses forced Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council to
declare a major incident as services were 'completely overstretched'
Major incident declared as people flock to
England's south coast
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council says
services are ‘completely overstretched’ as visitors defy advice to stay away
Steven
Morris, Helen Pidd and Archie Bland
Fri 26 Jun
2020 00.51 BSTFirst published on Thu 25 Jun 2020 15.15 BST
A major
incident was declared after tens of thousands of people defied pleas to stay
away and descended in their droves on beaches in Bournemouth and other
stretches of the Dorset coast.
The local
authority, BCP council – covering Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole – said it
was forced to instigate a multi-agency emergency response to tackle issues
ranging from overcrowding on the beaches, traffic gridlock and violence.
Security guards had to be used to protect refuse collection teams.
Matt
Hancock, the health secretary, said on TalkRadio that he had the power to close
the beaches if people did not respect social-distancing rules.
He said he
was “reluctant” to go down that route as “people have had a pretty tough
lockdown”. But he added that if there was a spike in the number of coronavirus
cases “then we will take action”.
The Bournemouth
East MP, Tobias Ellwood, said half a million people had flocked to the beaches
and said the situation was so overwhelming that the UK government should step
in to help the council deal with the crisis.
He said: “A
lot of people have chosen to be not just irresponsible but dangerous. We’ve
made such progress tackling this pandemic. I’d hate to see Bournemouth be the
one place in Britain that gets that second spike.”
The council
leader, Vikki Slade, said: “We are absolutely appalled at the scenes witnessed
on our beaches, particularly at Bournemouth and Sandbanks [in neighbouring
Poole].
“The
irresponsible behaviour and actions of so many people is just shocking and our
services are stretched to the absolute hilt trying to keep everyone safe. We
have had no choice but to declare a major incident and initiate an emergency
response.
“The
numbers of people descending down here are like those seen on a bank holiday.
We are not in a position to welcome visitors in these numbers now. Please do
not come.”
The council
said services were left “completely overstretched” as visitors arrived in huge
volumes resulting in widespread illegal parking, gridlock on roads, excessive
waste, antisocial behaviour including excessive drinking and fights and
prohibited overnight camping.
The health
secretary, Matt Hancock, threatened to close beaches if physical distancing
laws were not adhered to.
“We do have
that power,’ he told Talk Radio. “I am reluctant to use it because people have
had a pretty tough lockdown and I want everybody to be able to enjoy the
sunshine.
“But the
key is to do it with respect for the rules – stay with your household, stay a
good distance from other households.
“But we do
have those powers and if we see a spike in the number of cases then we will
take action.”
The chief
medical officer for England, Prof Chris Whitty, urged people to follow physical
distancing rules in the hot weather or risk causing a spike in coronavirus.
He wrote on
Twitter: “If we do not follow social distancing guidance then cases will rise
again. Naturally people will want to enjoy the sun but we need to do so in a
way that is safe for all.”
Some
motorists had to queue for two hours to get into Bournemouth and car parks were
full by 9am on Thursday. BCP council issued 558 parking enforcement fines
within a few hours – the highest ever. Families had travelled from as far
afield as London and Birmingham to the beaches in Dorset.
People
queued for 30 minutes at ice-cream vans and refreshment stalls on the promenade
as a police helicopter hovered overhead. At one point a dozen police officers
and security guards stepped in as tempers briefly flared between two sets of
teenagers.
Phil
Horton, 57, from Bournemouth, who works in the timber trade, said: “The number
of people here makes me very nervous, and there’s absolutely no respect for
social distancing. It seems like everyone has forgotten we are living in a
pandemic.
“What can
the police do about it? There’s thousands and thousands of people here so
they’re massively outnumbered. Good luck telling them to go home.”
Rickie
Inskip, a sports therapist, unfurled a banner reading: “Don’t be mean, keep the
beach clean.” He used a siren and megaphone to get the attention of the beach
and told them: “We love the fact you come to our beach but please don’t leave
your rubbish because it was in a disgusting state last night. We urge you to
keep the beach clean.”
The council
said refuse crews suffered abuse and intimidation as they attempted to empty
overflowing bins on the seafront. Security was put in place to protect them as
they collected more than 40 tonnes of rubbish.
Extra
police patrols were put on. Sam de Reya, Dorset police assistant chief
constable, said: “These are unprecedented times and we are urging people to
stay away from the area of Bournemouth beach and other Dorset beaches.
“The
declaration of a major incident allows us to bring agencies together so we can
take actions available to us to safeguard the public as much as possible.
“We are
also reliant on people taking personal responsibility and strongly advise
members of the public to think twice before heading to the area. Clearly we are
still in a public health crisis and such a significant volume of people heading
to one area places a further strain on emergency services resources.”
Ellwood
said it was a pity the government’s daily Covid-19 briefings had been halted as
these could be a way of getting out quick, clear messages when issues like this
crop up. He also said warning signs should be set up on the main roads and
railway stations to warn people that the resort was already full.
He said:
“Bournemouth is deluged with visitors and the local authority cannot cope. We
have the perfect storm of incredible weather and a liberation of some Covid-19
guidelines and given the wider consequences of a second spike, the government
needs to offer assistance and respond to this dangerous event.
“When you
have mass demonstrations in London the Metropolitan police can call on other
forces to help and I think this is what needs to happen here. The police
locally are overwhelmed, they cannot be everywhere.”
Stephen
Allen, a resident of Sandbanks, said: “It is the illegal camping that gets us.
You see people coming out of their tents in their pyjamas and head off into the
sand tunes with toilet roll. It is very unpleasant.
“There has
been illegal parking happening all over the place. Cars have parked on cycle
lanes, double yellow lines and on the pavements. They would happily take a £35
parking fine rather than queue for hours on end.”
Along the
Dorset coast at Lulworth, Cllr Laura Miller told of the abuse she received when
she tried to turn people away. She said: “I have been shouted and sworn at and
one guy spat at me.
“These are
people who have travelled three or four hours in their car, they are hot and
grumpy and then they are turned away. Some drivers have ignored our barriers
and just knocked them over and driven through.”
Police
officers also seized music equipment and arrested five people at Formby beach
on Wednesday afternoon after young people collected on the sand dunes.
Merseyside
police said five people were arrested for various offences including drunk and
disorderly behaviour and possession of drugs, and a speaker and music equipment
were seized.
Police
remained at Formby beach, as well as Ainsdale and Crosby beaches, parks and
beauty spots including Formby nature reserve, on foot, in vehicles and on quad
bikes.
Ch Insp
Andy Rankine said: “While we want everyone to enjoy themselves, antisocial
behaviour and criminality will not be tolerated and Merseyside police will take
action where necessary.”
The local
authority and police in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, continued to monitor the
numbers at its beach.
Cllr Ian
Gilbert, leader of the borough council, said: “We are aware of the situation in
Bournemouth. Although we are very busy and have our own challenges to deal with
including antisocial behaviour and littering, we are not currently at a stage
where we need to announce a major incident. However, we are keeping everything
under constant review, and liaising regularly with our partners in emergency
services.”
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