News / Crime
Five ordered to court over Severn Beach rave
Five people will be summoned to court over an illegal Halloween rave at Severn Beach which police closed down at 12.30pm on Sunday.
Police received complaints from as far as Wales for the rave of over 1,000 people and 500 vehicles in a field near Hallen.
Due to the size of the event, officers decided the most “safe and proportionate action” was to wait until the party had died down before closing it.
Police said on Monday they seized five vehicles and music equipment in doing so and reported five people for summons. Nobody was arrested.
The force started receiving reports and complaints of a rave at about 1.30am on Sunday.
But chief inspector Sonny Walker said police took the decision not to intervene immediately after assessing the site and their resources.
Aftermath of an outdoor Halloween rave involving hundreds near Severn Beach, which was stopped by police pic.twitter.com/36d7p7bh4J
— Anthony Ward (@Anth0ny_Ward) November 1, 2015
He said: “We understand that for those affected by the noise these events can be very frustrating, particularly if it disturbs their sleep, and we don’t underestimate the impact such events can have.
“Throughout the night we continued to monitor the event, preventing others accessing the site and containing those that were already there in the area.
“By 12.30pm we had shut down the event and have since reported a number of people for summons and they will be prosecuted in due course.
“We also seized a number of vehicles containing a significant amount of audio equipment.”
He added: “Unlicensed music events like these are a real nuisance to the local communities to which the organisers show little regard for, while they also pose a serious risk to public safety.
“We take these matters extremely seriously and will take action against those found to be involved in the organising of such events and seize their equipment to limit the possibility of future similar events.”
An illegal rave in St Philips last Halloween dubbed the ‘Ebola Ball’, saw violent clashes between police and party-goers.
Top picture from @solitsme
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