Fans f lee burning tents and fighting at festivals
Chaos at Reading and Leeds – as police probe teenager’s drug death
TERRIFIED teenagers fled music festivals early at the weekend to escape scenes of ‘anarchy’ after tents and equipment were set on fire and fighting broke out between groups of youths.
Parents, alerted by emotional phone calls, drove through the night to collect their sons and daughters from the events in Leeds and Reading.
The incidents came as police investigated the death of a boy of 16 after he apparently took ecstasy at the Leeds Festival. David Celino’s family described him as a ‘fiercely independent and warm character’ who had just got ‘fabulous’ GCSE results.
Police and festival organisers – the two events are run by the same company – yesterday played down the problems at both sites and said there were no reports of serious violence.
But the fires prompted widespread criticism of inadequate security and there were claims that tents had even been set ablaze while they were occupied.
Videos on social media showed youths gathering around fires at the festival camp sites.
At Leeds, chairs, and bottles said to have been filled with urine, were shown being hurled across the crowded camping areas. There were reports of tents being slashed and looted.
One tweeted: ‘ Last night at Leeds fest was pure anarchy.’
However, West Yorkshire Police said there was some ‘ anti- social behaviour’ but no reports of ‘serious disorder’.
A spokesman added: ‘ We are aware of sporadic tent fires which were dealt with by fire marshals, with persons then ejected. Police assistance was not required.’
A young woman revealed she feared for her life after an apparent spiking incident. She said she only had one alcoholic drink, started feeling unwell, and blacked out before being taken to hospital. Police said they were investigating two separate reports of needle
‘Throwing full beer cans’
spiking on girls of 17. At Reading, videos also showed tents on fire. The problems there started at 4pm on Sunday.
One festival-goer tweeted: ‘Saw multiple fires, boys fighting each other, girls egging them on... looting tents and throwing full beer cans at every and anyone. So we packed up and got outta there.’
Parent Greg Miller commented: ‘My son and all his friends are having to abandon the festival in Leeds and come home early because they feel unsafe and threatened by a plague of fires and violence.’
Another parent told how someone tried to set her daughter’s tent on fire ‘while she was in it’.
A Thames Valley Police spokesman said festival security quickly extinguished the fires. He said the disorder at around 4.30pm ‘was dealt with within minutes by festival security and about 50 people were ejected’.
Organisers from Festival Republic referred to the police statements.
David Celino was taken ill at the Leeds event on Saturday night and died in hospital hours later. Yesterday his devastated family, from Worsley, Greater Manchester, said the festival was supposed to be the ‘ highlight of his summer’.
They said: ‘ Our David was a beautiful, fiercely independent and warm character who lived every day at 110 per cent.’