ARSONISTS LEAVE BIG TRAIL OF DESTRUCTION
A coastal car park has been shut off to visitors after it became a dumping ground for fly-tipped waste which was set alight.
The area at Nose's Point in Seaham was taped off by Durham County Council on the lead-up to the Easter weekend after it became the target for vandals in recent weeks.
County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Service has been called out to the spot on several occasions.
Council staff have also been called in to clear away mounds of rubbish which have been left at the Dawdon site.
The county council’s car parks are being checked on a regular basis to also monitor the number of people who are using them during the ongoing coronavirus lockdown.
People have been urged to take a walk, run or cycle close to home, and not take their vehicles to visit places further afield.
A spokesperson for the council said: “At this time of emergency it is regrettable that our fire service colleagues have had to be called out to attend to fires at the site, and also our own staff to clear the several fly-tips.
“The car parks across the county are managed by a range of different services.
“We have however been monitoring numbers for most sites over the last few weeks, either through snapshot surveys or from counters and ticket machines.”
The spokesperson added: “We have noticed a substantial drop -off in numbers of vehicles, indicating a large number are heeding Government advice.
”We have placed signage on them all too.”
The council has said it understands a small number of people who use its sites may have arrived in a vehicle due to mobility issues, and that closing them may encourage inappropriate parking elsewhere in the area.
It has said it plans to review the move and close car parks if the council believes it will help keep people at home.
The council, as with other local authorities across the region, has closed its recycling sites until further notice.
This includes the sites at Strangford Road in Seaham, Sunderland Road in Horden and Potterhouse Lane in Pity Me.