Hundreds of revellers were found split across two sites at an illegal rave in rural Somerset which left police “frustrated”. Avon and Somerset Police were called to the unlicensed event, near Shipham and Rowberrow, at around 1.45am this morning, Friday, December 27, where up to 500 people had gathered.
Villagers had started to complain in the early hours by which point loud music could be heard for miles around. The two sites posed serious problems for police given the foggy conditions and the level of intoxication exhibited by those attending.
Obliging hundreds of intoxicated people to leave the site along tiny country lanes in pitch-black and foggy conditions was deemed a recipe for disaster by officers. It made stopping the party outright very difficult.
Officers had arrived shortly after 2am and put road closures in place to stop anyone else attending. Police said more people arrived in a number of vehicles but were turned away from the sites.
The officers engaged with the organisers and the sound equipment was packed away from one of the sites shortly before 6am. A senior officer then approved a dispersal notice which ordered that music at the second location was turned off no later than 9am.
Police officers remained in the area throughout the morning and most of the road closures have been lifted. Most of the ravers have also now left and the music has been switched off.
Illegal rave closed down in ‘challenging circumstances’
Chief Inspector Ian Norrie said: “Officers attending in the early hours of the morning faced really challenging circumstances due to the rural location, as well as pitch-black and foggy conditions.
“Following positive engagement, music at one of the sites was turned off overnight and we issued a dispersal notice in order to bring the second part to a safe conclusion, as soon as it was light enough to do so.
“To force hundreds of people to leave when it was dark and many were likely intoxicated could have made this situation more dangerous, not only to those involved, but also the local community, which would have been a risk we were not prepared to take. Public safety must always be our priority.
“We are grateful to everyone who called in the early hours and made us aware of this incident. While the location of this event was remote, the music could be heard by people living several miles away who have been disturbed throughout the night, which is not acceptable.
“We share their frustration because those who organised such an event have shown scant regard to the impact it would cause, nor the risks they were creating by having so many people at such an inappropriate location. Registration numbers of vehicles parked up at the event have been recorded to enable further enquiries to be carried out.”
Avon and Somerset Police added: “We would ask anyone who spots potential signs of an unlicensed music event taking place, such as a large number of vehicles at an unusual location and music equipment people unloaded, to please call us right away. It is often easier to prevent such events from happening before people arrive.