Illegal ravers leave trail of destruction

AT LEAST 100 people took part in an illegal rave at a Pershore beauty spot setting fire to wooden benches and leaving behind evidence of drug use.

The revellers gathered in Tiddesley Wood nature reserve on Saturday night (September 15) and were not dispersed by police until 7am the following morning after a dog walker reported them.

An ambulance was also called to the scene because of concerns over the state of some of the party-goers.

A generator and DJ set-up was found on the site and police believe at least five of the women attending the event had their handbags stolen - although three have since been found.

A sniffer dog searched the woods for drugs after the event and volunteers and staff from Worcestershire Wildlife Trust, which owns the reserve, were called in to clean up the huge number of bottles and other rubbish left by the crowd.

Harry Green, a Worcestershire Wildlife Trust trustee and volunteer said they were left angry and distraught by the mess left.

"I arrived to find police and an ambulance on the scene – they were still dispersing the party-goers and getting them to take away some of the rubbish they’d created," he said.

"What’s staggering is that no-one discovered this and that the police weren’t called earlier.

"While it’s terrible that these people don’t think twice about harming themselves, we’ve now got a big clean-up operation to undertake.

"The Trust is mainly funded by subscriptions from our members and much of the work that takes place at Tiddesley and our other reserves is done by volunteers – all the damage created in one night of partying will cost us in time and money.

"We use our funds carefully to manage our land for the benefit of wildlife – not to clean up after inconsiderate people."

The Trust has decided that, for now, they will not close the gate to the car park because they do not want to inconvenience the many people that visit the nature reserve responsibly.

The police are investigating the incident and both police and Worcestershire Wildlife Trust urge anyone with information to get in touch.

PC John Hunter, based in Pershore, added: "This was a particularly bad episode and highlights how dangerous these get togethers can be.

"There were some seriously ill people in the wood and our concerns with parties like this are that someone could easily die if they pass out in the undergrowth.

"I would urge anyone who hears or sees anything like this happening to get in touch with the police immediately."

Anyone with information should call the police on 0300 333 3000 or the Trust on 01905 754919.

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