Mirror Online: LONDON, England – Huge queues of traffic have caused chaos as people flock to UK beauty spots on yet another scorching day.
And massive lines of cars have been forming as beach-goers bask in what is expected to be the last day of the heatwave.
Big queues were seen on the way to Camber Sands in East Sussex as well as around Bournemouth.
And people have been told to go elsewhere as car parks neared full capacity.
People in Dorset are being urged to avoid Lulworth and Durdle Door due to large numbers already in the coastal areas, and officials said they are closing roads to manage traffic.
Thanet District Council said Ramsgate Main Sands beach in Kent was “extremely busy”, with high tide likely to make social distancing difficult.
A tweet by Rother DC said: “Camber Sands car parks will soon be full.
“Please consider other destinations and help us keep the roads clear for residents and emergency service vehicles.”
Beachgoers in Bournemouth camped overnight in tents and their cars to ensure their spot as another busy day on the beaches was expected today.
A local resident who headed out early to watch the sunrise described seeing “tents everywhere” on the beach and grass verges nearby, as well as people sleeping in their cars.
Photographs over the last couple of days have showed people packed together with a lack of social distancing – and scenes today are no different.
But this weekend’s heatwave is set to come to an abrupt end on Monday, with the Met Office issuing a yellow weather warning for thunderstorms for the whole of the UK.
As people sought to make the most of the hot weather, many of the Dorset car parks were full by lunchtime.
Kara-Jade Haywood headed to the beach at about 5am to watch the sunrise.
She said: “Bournemouth beach this morning there was tents everywhere.
“Every car in the car park had people sleeping in it and the beach was basically a camp site.
“Some people were just sleeping on the sand. The car park was full at 5am with people sleeping in cars and the free parking at the cliff top was already rammed with cars. Some were even sleeping on the grass hill.
“I know people say it’s great for the economy as they are staying in the UK, but not if they are not paying for accommodation and we are paying to clean the crap up when they leave.
“There was rubbish and barbecues everywhere.
“As we were leaving at 6.30am so many people were showing up.”
A spokesman for BCP Tourism said the rangers have been very busy dealing with incidents across the seafront so far on Friday and Saturday, when it is believed about 100,000 people hit the beaches of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole.
She said the rangers can ask people camping to leave but do not actually have powers to remove them. It is down to police to enforce the rules against camping on a public beach.
HM Coastguard dealt with 340 individual incidents across the UK on Saturday – its highest amount of call-outs in a single day for well over four years.
These included people being cut off by the tide and children swept out to sea on inflatables.
In total the service rescued 146 people and assisted a further 371 people.
By 1pm on Sunday several of the area’s beaches were already on a red alert, meaning they should be avoided, including Sandbanks, Alum Chine, Durley Chine, Avon Beach and Mudeford Sandspit.
A spokesman for BCP Tourism said the rangers have been very busy dealing with incidents across the seafront so far on Friday and Saturday, when it is believed about 100,000 people hit the beaches of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole.
She said the rangers can ask people camping to leave but do not actually have powers to remove them. It is down to police to enforce the rules against camping on a public beach.
HM Coastguard dealt with 340 individual incidents across the UK on Saturday – its highest amount of call-outs in a single day for well over four years.
