Police are on the scene after reports of a large brawl breaking out on Margate seafront.
Witnesses report dozens of people involved in a disturbance which appears to have started at the Kings Steps but has now broken out along the seafront close to the Nayland shelter.
Two police cars and a police van are currently in attendance.
UPDATE: Four cars and two vans now at the scene with a second fight reported to have broken out by the railway.
A large fight is also reported to have taken place in Viking Bay at around 6.15pm. Police attended the incident.
The incident comes at the end of a hugely busy day on Thanet’s beaches with one resident saying you couldn’t “even see the sand” at Margate. Similar crowds descended on Botany Bay.
Huge queues were still forming at the Arlington car park by mid-afternoon and large numbers of visitors have arrived by train today.
Residents have been astonished at the sheer number of people crowding onto with many saying the isle has been busier than most Summer holiday weekends.
In Botany Bay an emergency services crew called out to deal with a fire caused by a beach barbecue took 15 minutes to crawl along part of botany Road due to inconsiderate parking.
A resident in Botany Bay said cars were still arriving at gone 8pm tonight and police had closed access in the afternoon because of the growing danger of emergency vehicles unable to get through.
Thanet council, via its twitter account, said “thousands of people” had visited the isle today and urged them to make sure they took their rubbish home.
There have been calls for an alcohol ban on the beaches but it is questionable whether Thanet has the resources to enforce such a ban.
Concerns have again been raised about a lack of social distancing and the potential for transmission of the coronavirus.
Currently the R rate – the number of people a carrier would infect – stands at 0.7-0.9, below one but only by a small margin.
According to government data 43,230 people who tested positive for covid have now died. This number is likely to be greater with some experts saying it is nearer to 65,000.
There have been 684 covid-positive cases in Thanet.
It’s 8.15 in the evening and still we have cars arriving at Botany Bay. The police had to close the access this afternoon as it had become a serious danger as emergency vehicles wouldn’t be able to get through. So, all of you wets that clearly don’t live in the area, perhaps you will recognise the seriousness of the situation and stop suggesting that we are making a fuss over nothing. A bit of local support would be much appreciated instead of the usual do gooders putting in their uneducated views. Just saying it as it is.
Disgusting that you all have had to put up with that subhuman behaviour my thoughts are with you guys its bang out of order
Generations of youngsters have had everything handed to them , they have never wanted for anything and never had to face the consequences of their actions, these thugs and their friends fear nothing because there are no consequences anymore other than trivial fines and weak community sentencing.
With Liberal policing and courts determined to keep offenders on the streets it’s no wonder thugs no longer fear the police.
The vast (silent) majority want scum like these thugs locked up however the very vocal minority and their liberal ideology continue to push soft community sentencing. The liberal ideology of Second chances , third chances, criminals having the right to a family life, criminals receiving the same human rights as their victims etc etc are empowering the scum of society.
There are no plausible excuses for what’s happening in society but the liberal apologists will be out in force blaming the lockdown, blaming the police, blaming the far right, blaming everyone except themselves and their ideology that has weakened the criminal justice system and emboldened the criminal.
It seems that everyone is quick to learn their rights but not their responsibilities.
You couldn’t have had said it any better I totally agree with ALL Of what you said, & they ‘know their Rights but not their responsibility’..this is so very true!
Didn’t you know? The virtue signallers, SJW’S, permanently oppressed & permanently outraged brigade are immune from personal responsibility-it is always somebody else’s fault & no doubt this will be the council’s fault, the police’s fault-nobody better to blame at the moment. Heaven forbid any of the revelers were BAME, Gay/Lesbian, Trans, Non Gender Binary/Identify as some inanimate object or morbidly obese-any criticism of them is automatically racist/homophobic/genderphobic/transphobic/particlephobic/fatphobic etc.
You know what Steve? Your comment couldn’t be more wrong. I was down on the beach cleaning up the mess yesterday and today as I do most days all through the year. Amongst those of us volunteers with our litter pickers and bags spending hours cleaning up after the selfish people who left their filth on the beach were Black and Minority Ethnic people, lots of teenagers and young people, and LGBT folk too, including at least one trans person – I know, because I’m one! Please spare us the stereotyping and offensive generalisations. Lots of us are part of the solution, not the problem.
Boring old cunts nothing better to do , complain in the winter to
*too
Why do people’s comments need to degenerate? Such use of foul language only confirms the “users” lack of education and social responsibility.
Steve- what are SJWs? Thanks.
And yet in this “liberal” conspiracy the jails are full to breaking point!!! Not seen any body blaming the police either. The police used strong arm tactics in the 60s and 70s but it didn’t stop the Weekly hooliganism that used to descend on Margate then.
“It didnt stopped the Weekly hooliganism that USED to descend on Margate” Yes it was the policing that cleaned up Margate then and they will do it again.
The population has exploded but no new jails have been built so no wonder the jails are full. You will also find that a very large percentage of people in jail are there because they have disobeyed their community sentences and have not rehabilitated after being given 6, 7, 8 community sentences/chances to stop offending. The youth are not afraid of a police force made impotent by by liberal ideologies.
This is the most ignorant comment I’ve seen. So all the thousands of people that flocked to the beach today were youngsters were they, this comment seems like you have a bigger problem with youngsters than what was going on at the beach. There were people of all ages at the beach, family’s with their children, young children, adults, and Legally they aren’t doing anything wrong, beaches are open, beach bars are open. The problem is there is no control over how many people can occupy the beach. You should be grateful people want to come to your town and spend their money in your local businesses at this hard time. Maybe next time instead of being so sour and bitter you should join them you clearly need a good time. Have a nice day.
This article was about mass fights erupting in Margate beach, Viking bay and Margate train station. I can’t understand why you seem so upset when the reality is that It was people under the age of 25 who was involved in all the fights, it’s people under 25 who are leaving thousands of gas canisters and beer bottles all over thanet and it’s usually people of that age and younger who throw all their crap in the streets and beaches.
There’s ignorant and then there’s burying your head in the sand like you seem to be doing. Most people over the age of 35 know how to use a waste bin however there are a lot (not all ) of younger people who believe the beach, local parks and streets are their waste bin. The rest of society shouldn’t be forced to live in a shithole Just because some People are selfish and want to live in a dump.
totally agree
have you seen the shitty mess locals and vistors have left the beach in today feckn disgusted
do not come to our beach at all if you intend to leave your feckn shit on the beach
driven past in a local taxi on way home the beach was heaving going to work and now it is incarcerated with loads of rubbish the bins are overflowing people fly tipping go home and stay at home we are still with covid 19 and you leave your bags of rubbish on our beaches
animals feckn animals the lot of you
seagulls will now make it worse
where are the beach cleaners at TDC
you know the beach is going to busy
where is your policing to control the amount of visitors feckn nowhere labour should resign over this today
it is a shit hole but then hey that is thanet all over
and tdc get your arse out there and clean the feckn beach
Have wander down to the beach tomorrow morning , there’ll be a good number of tdc staff clearing up the mess just as they did this morning. Pointless doing it in the evening as the stragglers are still dropping rubbish. Such behaviour is just a sad aspect of modern life.
Can’t fine them as it’ll just kick off and police won’t act unless therenis serious crime / disorder for same reason.
So not much can/ will be done. Should be a £5 deposit on all take away wrappers and drink containers, punters take the rubbish back shop refunds and deals with the rubbish they’ve help create. Any uncollected deposits passed onto council to pay for clearing up the remaining mess.
Here here.
Get rid of furlough and get them back to work. If they’re not adhering to social distancing they might as well be working and saving taxpayers money. Absolutely disgusting behaviour.
There’s only one solution to this close the beaches!
how you impose that dear Richard put a border into our town ffs get real
you stand there and tell people to go home because of covid 19
Don’t close the beaches. That isn’t fair to the majority who don’t behave badly.
Marva, you still don’t get it. Please take the time to visit Botany Bay, we don’t have any option. You are one of the wets I’ve referred to. Get real.!
Close the roads except to local residents. And blame the government!
No Marva, its not the government’s fault, it’s poor parenting combined with a weak, liberal justice system. Society is now motivated by self interest and a lot of the younger generations have zero respect for the law or other citizens.
I can’t get to Botany Bay except by bus, which I don’t fancy just at present.
You’ve just made my point Marva. Don’t comment on something you have no experience of. We’re fed up local people who know nothing of the issues commenting negatively. We need your support to resolve an outrageous situation brought about my non action from our council.
It was the government who lifted travel restrictions too soon.
I leave in Margate, and i respect the residents with my heart, but i must say this,iam no saint, we oll of us than samething, i bean educated by my mother, and i had to obey her orders ,otherwise no dinner, and i grow up respect everybody at prsenr day, only day 25 my self and siester and her 3 children, went to Margate beatch to have good time and catch vitamins from the sun, this was at 4 pm a man just pull his manwood out and pee just there, we had to say to the children to look other way, and people blame government, i dont think so, i bealive is luck of education, every person should have basik education and its free ,we have toilets , with toilet paper and soube ,but we dont find in toilets ,way? simple, people still it, so are we going to blame the government for this,off course not, we have to blame the parents thats so.only know the government has to take magers very drastics leak take the British passport, curt the help they receive from government and we going to have a nice country
Totally agree with you if they cant respect our beaches then close them I’m sure the locals would prefer that than what’s going on
More heartwarming scenes of the English at play!
To think that millions of Britons voted to leave the EU because they thought we are better than they are.
We really aren’t!
Remoan! Remoan! Change the record.
Oh shut up. Nothing to do with Brexit, don’t make it out to be.
These are the idiots that usually go to Greek, Spanish and Canary Isles beaches I expect, the ones that would probably want their freedom to travel frely to these places but can’t.
They are no different to most other nationalities once they’ve got a few sherbets inside them.
Just a pain in the butt idiots.
like yourself keefogs with your pathetic comments
everyone is at fault has nothing to do with leaving EU mr political scoring points think your fogs are kee
Spouting Utter garbage as usual Keefogs. This has nothing to do with Brexit.
Youngsters no longer fear the law. Society has gone soft on criminals and we are now witnessing the results. It also doesn’t help that the far left are demonising the police and stripping away their powers, no wonder these thugs laugh in the face of the police and act with impunity.
Astonished that TDC didn’t have any parking officers around Botany Bay today. I estimate they could have ticketed at least 100 cars. Just keep the parking officers going out every hot day and ticket anyone that parks like an idiot. Hopefully they will get the message at some point.
No the wardens are too busy catching us locals with out vans parked a foot over the double yellows at just gone 7 in the morning
That’s really disappointing if that is the case when there are much bigger parking issues to sort out. Put all the parking attendants around the beach areas. Most of the people I saw parking like idiots weren’t locals.
Or waiting round corners to catch residents overstaying an hour in their own empty street.
We need more law enforcement in Thanet in General. There are many things besides inconsiderate parking and general thuggery that need to be tackled.
Several times recently I have seen people speeding around at 30+ mph on Jet Skis in Margate harbour. Most worrying is that they didn’t seem to care that they were coming within a few feet of swimmers on Margate beach near the King’s Steps. There is a sign on the slipway to the harbour saying “no jet skis” but nobody seems to care and they won’t until somebody gets killed.
People on jetskis speed dangerously close to swimmers and other people in the sea in Ramsgate too. Something needs to be done urgently. Kite-surfers and jetski users should be banned from the main public beaches. They all seem to have a car or van and they could easily go to quieter beaches. There is a precedent- Lake Windermere has banned jetskis altogether.
The jet skis are a real menace. They come far too close to the shore at speed all along the coast. I see them doing this at Botany Bay all the time and I’ve seen them do it at Margate Harbour exactly as you said Rabbie. A lifeguard told me there was a crash between two speeding jet skis on BB the other day within 50-100 yards of the absolutely packed shore. Luckily no-one was hurt. I asked her if she reported it, she said no, no point, no-one does anything about it… I dread the tragedy that will inevitably happen some day, whereupon the council and authorities will say that lessons must be learned (same as always happens).
Unfortunately there are a lot of very stupid people going to the beaches in Thanet and elsewhere. They clearly only think of themselves and no-one else and seem to be under the impression that the virus has disappeared and that it’s acceptable to park wherever they want. TDC need to sort out a lot more residents parking zones in vulnerable areas in Broadstairs, Ramsgate and Margate and have enough enforcement officers to deal properly with offenders.
I agree. TDC are always moaning they don’t have any money but they can rake it in with fines on days like today.
The police need water cannons!!!!
The army should be handling this lot, faced with PC Plod & his truncheon that he doesn’t want to use, or faced with a trained killer holding an assault rifle we know who they are going to be the big man to & who they will get in their car & drive like the clappers back to London, Birmingham etc
Botany Bay. Ticketing.is not enough deterrent. Tow them away..
As for the mindless masses. Our illustrious PM told us that we could use common sense and sensible social distancing now…so how’s that working out…hahaha
If only Paul. We are governed by weak toothless officials. This will end in tragedy, when they will wring their hands and say the modern mantra “lessons must be learnt” having failed to deal with the issue so much earlier. It needs the community to come together and force the authorities to act. NOW! So to the wets… that means you!
I live down Botany Road … the noise tonight is appalling … and cars still going down the road towards the beach .. good job the call out for the fire engine wasnt very serious … honestly people holding them up because they were changing thier shoes
Local councils used to charge to hire deckchairs. Because of the shortfall in the budget due to Covid-19 why don’t we charge people £20 to use the beach for the day. If they still don’t behave hire a bull! That would soon clear the beach.
Nice one Laura. I’m more than happy to take their money. Just see how they run. I can’t wait!
charge £50 to use the beach £20 is just a mere token have you seen the shit they have left the beach in
Why not follow the idea of Dorset Council? They are only allowing visitors from the area and with a Dorset Post Code to apply for a parking permit- £10 for 4 hrs or £15 all day – the car park ares are monitored, no permit no parking and you turned away – anyone parking where they shouldn’t hit with a heafty fine…..just a thought, nothing else. Thoughts with teh poor residents who are ungoing such shameful inconsideration from people.
The amount of broken glass everywhere on and around margate beach is a fkin disgrace. I hope ppl smashing stuff and leaving it are the people that slice their feet open or fall and get a chunk of glass lodged up their аss crack
Having seen how beautifully clean the beaches were a month ago, when they were only being used by locals, it’s clear that the people leaving the beaches in a complete state now are inconsiderate scumbags travelling here from elsewhere. Quite apart from that, god knows what this influx of idiots will do to the Covid-19 infection rate in coastal areas!
I’d be quite happy for the beaches to be closed until these morons learn how to behave in a more acceptable manner.
The answer is don’t clean the beaches for the next couple of weeks. Let them come from away and let them sit in the shite their mates left the day before. Our bin men didn’t take my food bin for some reason but go and clean up the beach left by others that dont pay Thanet Council TAX. THEY DON’T SPEND IN THE TOWN I’M NOT HAPPY.
Well done Allan Moore, my thoughts exactly. I would be quite happy to leave the shit on the beaches as an experiment and see what happens when they all start arriving again the next day. Would they start cleaning it up and moaning about themselves leaving crap the day before, or would they just lie amongst it all, like they do at home probably. Dirty lazy younger generations that have too much to say about everything but know nothing at all. I wish TDC would leave it for a week and see what happens. None of these people spend anything in town so send all the enforcement officers out, hire more and start raking in the fines which will more than cover the expenses. Why let idiots park wherever they like, causing emergency services to get stuck in the jams and not fine any of them. They all have plenty of money to buy these huge cars so tow them away if parked wrong. Put up signs saying Tow-away-area. Other councils can do it and get it right, why not here?
We agree then. Don’t clean the beaches and I might even take my food bin down that the bin men left this week and add it to the crap on the beach? Oh I forgot… I’ll get done for fly tipping.
Alan Moor-That’s a terrible idea. What about the rest of us, the people who go to the beach and don’t behave badly?
My sister lives in pourtugal, we spoke just last Saturday…. She owns a successful bar… Hi siss.. Hi bro.. How’s things…. Yer great bro bars doing great….. This Monday…. Hi bro I don’t want to chat just now., pourtugal on another lock down because of all the arssholes that flocked the beaches!!!! Now we are couple of weeks behind pourtugal my sister can’t even trade again because of all the inconsiderate shits out there…. Watch out Britain after seeing today’s disaster of humans on our beaches…. We are 100% gonna have the same problem !!!!!!!!!!
How about this for an idea? Instead of TDC employing people to constantly give broadcasts on social media asking people to clear up after themselves (which, let’s face it, visitors to beaches like Botany Bay aren’t going to see – are they going to follow TDC on a day trip? ) they redeploy those staff to work at Botany Bay handing out bin bags and walking the beach making sure everything is tidy when people leave? Wouldn’t cost any extra money and deals with the actual problem rather than the consequence.
That’s a horrible idea. When the beaches are clean and quiet, we get a lot beautiful seabirds. Sometimes there’s seals. My biggest concern is that all of the garbage left behind by filthy visitors is being injested by wildlife. TDC obviously don’t care about wildlife. If they did, we might get the “right” kind of tourists.
This seems to be a problem everywhere I go in England. Why don’t you clean up after yourselves? Why don’t you shame your fellow countrymen for treating your shared spaces like this? This would never fly in New Zealand/Australia.
I guess the reason people dont is we are now second generation of Thatcher people. The one that’s dont give a sh*t about anyone or anywhere else. It’s what Thatcher wanted look after number one and sod everyone else, someone will always clear up behind you.
What a load of idiots,going to the beach,all the children that are not going to school should be at home doing home schooling not spending the day on the beach, shame on the parents. People have no respect for the 2.2 million that are still in insulation till the 1st August, not many feel safe going out for an hour’s exercise,that is all they are able to do at the moment.
All the people not doing what has been advised are going to course a second wave off this dreadful disease.. and the poor 2.2 million are going to suffer even longer insulation . The government need to get stop people coming into our local towns and make them stay in their own area, to much freedom to soon.
I’d rather the beaches be closed off than all the covidiot hoards, fights and disgusting, disrespectful mess. They seem to forget we live here! I’m sick and tired of cleaning up after them when I get down there!
JUST GET THE POLICE TO SHUT THE ROAD OF LIKE THEY DID IN CAMBER TODAY. BUT KNOW MARGATE POLICE ARE JUST BULLIES TO INNOCENT PEOPLE. THEY DONT DO A DECENT DAYS WORK
Fighting on our beaches, drink and drug fuelled male and female yobs. We have some wonderful people young and old in our society, we also have some of the dregs of the planet, those who don’t give a damn about anything or anyone, unfortunately they do as they please and did anyone else. Our beaches must be properly Policed for the safety of the decent families and children who use them.no large groups, the threat of large fines and even arrest. If the police can’t cope bring in the army.
There are employed persons with responsibility who can act on all of Thanet problems.
Maybe the employed persons have reasons why they refuse to use their existing powers. Maybe they should consider alternative employment outside of governance.
Thanet residents lives matter.
Imagine if we trained to London and fly tipped in st pancras station, we would be locked up.
Police should stop cars at st Nicholas round about and send them back
All I can say is…. wait until the pubs/restaurants open, there will be more drunks and ppl behaving badly, yesterday saw how ppl reacted to the lockdown, if you’re sensible enough and want to survive the “second” wave… then look after YOU, don’t rely on the government to do that for you. Many holidays abroad were cancelled now this is result!!!
Matt hancock says hes got the power to close the beaches but hes to scared to do it
Social distancing my ass???
If you voted Tory any time in the last 10 years you voted for local authority cuts, weakened NHS, cuts in police numbers, cuts in the prison service, a trashed legal system, under funded schools, closed youth centres,
And that criminal scum Johnson.
I note all the locals are moaning about people coming to use the beaches and talking about charging. Why would you want to do that. We visitors bring our money to spend in your town. If you charge, yes I and others would go elsewhere to enjoy the beach and Margate would lose out! All your local businesses were benefiting. I spent on food (huge queues) parking and deck chairs. Quite a bit for a day trip. In the UK we get very few days of good weather per year, so stop moaning and let people enjoy the beach for the 2 days a year that the sun is actually out. We are do not make this visit to your town year round. Btw I took all my rubbish home. The bins on the beach front were all overflowing, therefore some people were actually using the bins avaliable. Don’t paint everyone with the same brush.I think it’s disgusting and laziness that all visitors yesterday did not take their rubbish home. How hard would it have been, to put your rubbish in the same bag you bought it down in? Thanks for a lovely day out Margate.
Thanks for taking your rubbish home London Girl. If everyone could do that it would be great (and we clearly need to put out even more big bins)
The sign says welcome to Margate-welcome to what exactly? Dog excrement laden streets? Fag ends & rubbish everywhere? Yahoos high on booze & drugs itching for trouble? Mostly boarded up shops? Locked toilets? Beaches that could be flowing with sewage at any point? Makes you wonder why anybody still comes here.
Marva – SJW = ‘Social Justice Warrior
Thanks.