Police are abused by motorists queuing at garage that was closed

OFFICERS WERE SENT TO BREAK UP LINE OF 100 CARS

POLICE were abused by motorists who queued for up to three hours to get into a petrol station – which was closed.

Officers were sent to Burnaston to reports of queuing traffic causing tailbacks on the busy A516.

They found more than 100 drivers trying to get into an unmanned Gulf petrol station which was closed after vandals attacked the pumps.

Derbyshire police took to Facebook to report on the situation. Writing on the force’s Swadlincote Police SNT page, they said: “We were called to a rural garage near Burnaston following reports of queues of traffic.

“Arriving at the unmanned petrol station on the fast-flowing A516 roadway, officers observed long queues of cars attempting to enter the petrol station.

“It soon became clear that the drivers had been queuing at a petrol station for several hours despite the fact that the garage was not open and unable to serve fuel after unknown persons had

damaged some of the pumps.”

Police attempted to explain the situation to drivers who had been sitting in their cars for “over three hours”.

They added: “With regret, officers, who were stood outside in pouring rain directing traffic, were subjected to abuse and a series of inexplicable excuses of why they needed to enter a closed garage that was unable to sell fuel.

“An investigation is under way to locate two men in a white van who made threats to an officer at the scene after they were asked to