With warm and sunny weather forecast for the weekend, the Chief Constable for Dorset, James Vaughan is reminding people that lockdown may have eased but it’s not over yet and overnight stays in camper vans, motorhomes and second homes are still not allowed.
He says that there are a lot of people visiting Dorset and he’s asking them to take responsibility for their actions and to do the right thing to avoid spreading the virus and reduce the impact on local communities.
Chief Constable of Dorset, James Vaughan said:
“Despite the ongoing lockdown measures, we are experiencing a high volume of visitors to Dorset and this is in part due to the beautiful weather we are experiencing.
“However, what is apparent is that in some locations, social distancing cannot be adhered to because of the sheer number of people there. The message from Dorset Police and our partner agencies is that if an area looks too busy, please go home or elsewhere.
Dorset and BCP Council poster
Last weekend, Durdle Door near the small village of Lulworth in Dorset was overwhelmed with day trippers and the beach quickly became overcrowded.
There were also reports of people staying overnight in camper vans and a large group of people had to be prevented by Swanage Coastguard from camping overnight at Tilly Whim in Durlston. James Vaughan added:
“I’m also urging everyone to remember that overnight stays in campervans, motorhomes and second homes are not allowed. We are receiving increased reports of these breaches in Dorset and our officers will continue to patrol hotspot areas, engage with the people involved and encourage them to go home.”
Dorset Police says that between Friday 27th March and Wednesday 27th May 2020, it issued 882 fixed penalty notices to people who had allegedly breached the COVID-19 (coronavirus) restrictions. Although it says that very few fines have been issued over the last week, and the rise in numbers now is a result of the time lag in the fines being processed and recorded.
