Beachgoer says he’s not worried about lack of social distancing in Bournemouth

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A beach-goer in Bournemouth spoke for thousands ignoring lockdown rules as he said coronavirus ‘doesn’t really matter’ after families headed to the coast during this week’s mini-heatwave. 

The man was speaking as around 500,000 people flocked to the south coast yesterday, with violent outbursts leaving Bournemouth Council no choice but to declare a major incident. 

It comes as Boris Johnson yesterday warned ‘immortal and invincible’ young people are taking risks by potentially spreading the disease to elderly people, and slammed beach-goers for ‘taking too many liberties’.      

The man told the BBC that he was not concerned about social distancing despite the beach being a ‘bit hectic’, saying: ‘We’re going to have a couple of drinks, enjoy the sun.

‘It’s the closest we’re gonna get to a holiday this year, so got to enjoy it really.’

His friend responded ‘we’ve had two (holidays) cancelled already’, before he added: ‘I still don’t know anyone that’s even had it [Covid-19] so in my eyes, it doesn’t really matter.

‘But yeah, as long as everyone’s safe, but it’s getting a bit hectic down here now isn’t it? It’s probably going to cause a second wave, people are just doing what they want aren’t they?’ 

The PM warned of a ‘serious spike’ in coronavirus infections in the UK if people do not follow social distancing guidance before lockdown restrictions are eased further in just over a week’s time on July 4.

But many ignored his advice with a week of blazing sunshine due to end this weekend, with thunderstorms and downpours sweeping into the UK along with lightning, hail, flooding and up to 2in (50mm) of rain in an hour. 

Beaches including Southend-on-Sea in Essex and West Wittering in West Sussex were busy yesterday, but visitor numbers in Bournemouth were well down – with some local cafes and bars appearing to be closed following the carnage yesterday, which ended in three men in their 20s being stabbed on the beach just before 10pm.

Paramedics took the three men to hospital in non life-threatening conditions. One man suffered a stab wound to his back, a second man sustained an injury to his face and the third was injured in the chest and arm.

Beaches across Britain were left covered in litter overnight as Health Secretary Matt Hancock warned they could be shut amid fears of a repeat of yesterday’s chaos – before the weather turns later on as thunderstorms sweep in.

Workers and volunteers walked through mounds of rubbish, from takeaway boxes to drinks bottles, along the sand in Bournemouth this morning, while piles of laughing gas canisters were also seen on the pavement.

Speaking during a visit to the Pizza Pilgrim restaurant in East London, Mr Johnson said: ‘If you look at what’s happening elsewhere in the world where people have been coming out of lockdown, I’m afraid what you’re also seeing is people taking too many liberties with the guidance, mingling too much, not observing social-distancing.

‘So in some parts of the world – I won’t name them – you have got spikes, really serious spikes, in the instance of the disease so it is crucial that people understand that on July 4 we get this right, we do this in a balanced way.’ 

Police came under attack from revellers in London for the second night in a row, as officers tried to disperse crowds at an unlicensed music event in Notting Hill, and also had to shut down a similar gathering in Streatham. 

Police were also called to brawls in Brighton as well as at Exmouth in Devon, Southend-on-Sea, Ogmore-by-Sea in South Wales and the Isle of Sheppey in Kent. The widespread violence came as:

• Police chiefs warned pubs will be ‘apocalyptic’ on July 4 if the weather stays the same amid fury over them being reopened on a Saturday – and that people must take ‘more personal responsibility’;
• London Mayor Sadiq Khan announced £110million of police cuts just hours after Metropolitan Police chief Cressida Dick vowed to crack down on the capital’s illegal raves;
• The Everton-supporting Mayor of Liverpool said it was ‘disappointing’ supporters gathered in large numbers outside Anfield to celebrate Liverpool’s title win;
• A 32-year-old woman from Birmingham was arrested on suspicion of murdering two men at an outdoor lockdown party in Manchester;
• Temperatures will hit 82F (28C) today before thunderstorms and two inches of rain in an hour sweep in.

In Bournemouth, a major incident was declared yesterday after 500,000 visitors overwhelmed Dorset, with the authorities activating an ’emergency response’ after they clogged up roads and dumped tons of litter on beaches. 

Coastal beauty spots around the country saw drunken fights amid blatant flouting of two-metre social distancing rules by crowds of young revellers despite Britain still being in lockdown to fight the spread of Covid-19. 

There are fears over a resurgence of coronavirus as the heatwave triggered a frenzied rush to the seaside. And Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty stressed: ‘If we do not follow social distancing guidance then cases will rise again. Naturally people will want to enjoy the sun but we need to do so in a way that is safe for all.’  

Bournemouth council leader Vikki Slade said local residents ‘would love us to close the beaches’, but they do not have the power to do so because people live along the 15 miles of coastline and it therefore ‘just isn’t practical’. 

There was also shocking violence against officers trying to end a party in Brixton on Wednesday night. Police now fear widespread drunken disorder on July 4 – dubbed ‘Super Saturday’ – when pubs and restaurants can reopen. 

Temperatures hit 92.1F (33.4C) at London Heathrow Airport yesterday afternoon, making it Britain’s hottest day of 2020 for the second consecutive day after the mercury got to 90.7F (32.6C) in the same location on Wednesday.  

A yellow weather warning is in place for most of England, Scotland and east Wales until 9am tomorrow. Met Office forecaster Craig Snell said: ‘Not everyone will see a storm, but if you catch one, you will certainly know about it.’ 

The Environment Agency issued seven flood alerts, including five for near rivers in the West Midlands, as well as others for waterways around Loughborough in Leicestershire and the River Trent tributaries in Nottinghamshire.

In Bournemouth, residents have spoken about the ‘mayhem’ as tens of thousands of sun-worshippers descended on Bournemouth beach ‘with no idea of social distancing’.

Local resident Pat Munday, 73, described how cars were double-parking and blocking driveways, preventing emergency vehicles from getting through, while people were using the gardens of her apartment block as a toilet on Wednesday and Thursday.

She said: ‘It was just mayhem, people just want to have a good time but they just don’t give a monkey’s about others. It’s a shame, it’s such a beautiful part of the country but people just need some control, people have lost all sense of respect – when they urinate in your garden, it’s the pits.’

Vic Williams, 75, said: ‘There was no idea of social distancing, when we left at 2pm the crowds were still arriving, there wasn’t any two metres. Because the restaurants are closed, there’s nowhere else for people to go.’

Mr Williams said the council’s tractors had been out in the early hours clearing up the tonnes of rubbish left.

He added: ‘The litter afterwards was unbelievable, they just walk away from the beach and leave their rubbish, there were tents left, BBQs, it costs us ratepayers a fortune.’

A senior lifeguard said there was an ‘excessive’ number of people during the hottest days, and added: ‘Bournemouth has a reputation as one of the best beaches in Europe … but it’s important we work together so everyone can feel safe.’

Jessa Bane, 18, and a group of friends travelled down from the Reading area to enjoy the beach after finishing college. She said: ‘We have created our own social bubble by drawing a line in the sand around us to make sure we can social distance.’

Asked about the situation on beaches, a Downing Street spokesman told a Westminster briefing: ‘Everyone should be able to enjoy the sunshine, and we understand that people want to enjoy public spaces, but it is important we don’t undo the hard work of the British public in reducing the transmission of this virus.

‘It is a matter for local authorities to manage numbers, alongside emergency services and Public Health England.

‘As we saw yesterday they are best placed to make those decisions on a case-by-case basis. We have been clear that should we see case numbers increase we will introduce local lockdowns.’

Pressed on whether the Government would close beaches, the Number 10 spokesman said: ‘It is for local authorities to manage numbers.

‘I believe Matt Hancock, when he spoke, was referring to the powers to impose localised lockdowns which we have been clear throughout may need to be the case if we see case numbers rise in a particular area.’

In Liverpool, police condemned the thousands of fans who filled the streets outside Anfield after the club won the Premier League.

Assistant Chief Constable Rob Carden said Merseyside had been ‘disproportionately affected’ by the coronavirus pandemic and its residents had a responsibility to prevent further cases.

He said: ‘The overwhelming majority of fans have recognised the fact that now is not the time to gather together to celebrate, and chose to mark the event safely. They are a credit to this city.

‘Unfortunately, as we have seen throughout the lockdown period, not everyone adhered to the regulations in place. Although the vast majority of celebrations were good natured, a large number of people chose to gather outside the stadium.’

Earlier, about 100 fans gathered outside the Main Stand at Anfield for when the final whistle blew on Thursday’s Chelsea v Manchester City match, securing Liverpool the title with seven games to spare.

Fireworks went off and fans waved flags and sang: ‘We’ve gone and won the league.’ 

Within an hour of the result, thousands of fans had gathered outside the stadium, lighting red flares and singing football songs. People, with children and dogs, continued to make their way across Stanley Park to get to the stadium.

Many fans were seen hugging and one man stood with his arm around a cardboard cut out of manager Jurgen Klopp. 

Others carried flags and scarves while some fans brought crates of beer. Many fans wore face masks for the gathering and shortly before 11pm, Merseyside Police announced road closures would be put in place.

Police officers could be seen in the area as fans celebrated but no attempts were made to disperse the good-natured crowd. Liverpool City Council told fans to ‘have a great party’ but maintain distancing as they celebrated.

The Premier League restarted earlier this month after pausing due to the Covid-19 pandemic, with games now played behind closed doors. Merseyside Police’s Mr Carden urged fans to mark the occasion safely.

He said: ‘In the days ahead, we urge supporters to do the right thing and celebrate safely with members of your household and in your social bubble. By doing this you keep yourself, your family, friends and neighbours safe.’ 

Meanwhile in Notting Hill, officers attempting to disperse crowds at an unlicensed music event have been attacked by revellers. Scotland Yard said objects were thrown at officers dispersing the crowd at an event at Colville Gardens.

Former Met detective Peter Bleksley has criticised the force’s tactics and said today: ‘Wednesday evening, Brixton, police in high-vis and flat caps. Thursday evening, Notting Hill, police in full public order kit. Inconsistent. Are senior officers making it up as they go along?’

And Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage told MailOnline he fears a summer of violence after a second night of attacks on police in London. He said: ‘There is more to come. Respect for the police is gone’.

It comes as the Home Secretary vowed those who attack police ‘will be taken off our streets’ after violence at the street party in Brixton on Wednesday evening which she described as ‘utterly vile’.

Priti Patel told the Daily Express: ‘The police have my full support in upholding the rule of law and tackling this thuggery. I want to see those responsible arrested, brought to justice and taken off our streets – before they put even more people in danger.’

Scotland Yard said in a statement on Facebook late last night that its officers were undertaking an ‘enhanced policing operation’ across the capital.

Commander Bas Javid said extra officers, clad in personal protective equipment, had been called in to ensure there was an ‘effective and prompt response to any reports or disorder’.

He added: ‘Our role is to keep our communities safe and this evening people can expect to see a heightened police presence out in areas where we know these events are taking place.’

‘This is in direct response to concerns expressed by our communities, many of whom were scared and shocked by the events taking place outside their homes.’

Kensington and Chelsea Police said people at the West London event dispersed at around 2am this morning and there were no reports of serious injury.

Meanwhile, police also attended an ‘unlicensed music event’ at Streatham Common yesterday evening. 

The force tweeted: ‘Officers are currently at Streatham Common where an unlicensed music event is taking place.

‘They have engaged with a large number of those in attendance and the crowd has now almost entirely dispersed.’

The extra police officers in protective gear were dispatched to illegal raves planned around London following violent scenes at the street party in Brixton on Wednesday.

The Met Police said it was targeting further unlicensed music events and block parties around the city after 22 officers were injured on the Angell Town estate in Brixton. 

Footage on social media showed police vehicles smashed and officers pelted with bottles during clashes with a large crowd, with Downing Street condemning the scenes as ‘appalling’.

The scenes in Bournemouth and elsewhere prompted Mr Hancock and Mr Whitty to warn the public not to undo their success in tackling the pandemic.

Mr Hancock said he was ready to order the closure of beaches if there are repeats of yesterday’s packed scenes at Bournemouth and other hotspots.

‘We do have that power. I am reluctant to use it because people have had a pretty  tough lockdown and I want everybody to be able to enjoy the sunshine,’ he told Talk Radio.

‘But the key is to do it with respect for the rules – stay with your household, stay a good distance from other households. But we do have those powers and if we see a spike in the number of cases then we will take action.’

The Health Secretary added: ‘The number of cases is right down, but we must all stay alert. 

‘The sun is shining and of course everyone wants to enjoy the glorious weather, but the Daily Mail is right that we mustn’t throw it all away. Keep to the rules or we risk going backwards.’

Vikki Slade, the leader of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council, told BBC Breakfast: ‘We don’t have the power to close the beaches. Local people would love us to close the beaches.

‘They’re prepared to sacrifice their beaches to get rid of the behaviours they’re seeing. But that’s not a power that we have. We have 15 miles of coastline.

‘People here live on the beach, it’s not like a private beach at the end of the road that you could shut the road off. People are living right down by the sand and so that just isn’t practical.

‘What we did yesterday was to try and bring all the agencies together so that we were able to do things like the police issued a Section 35 Dispersal Order at one point because of the bad behaviour.

‘We were able to get extra patrols in to try and stop the overnight camping that we’ve seen on our beaches. We’re able to recruit in people from other… see if we go to other counties and ask them for staff we can use to try and deal with the problem.’

Bournemouth’s Mayor Susan Phillips told ITV’s This Morning: ‘Yesterday was chaotic. It put a lot of pressure unfortunately on all of the agencies that do work together, can work together, including our hospitals because I understand there was an absolutely chaotic problem in Bournemouth and Poole yesterday.’

Asked if the roads should have been closed to prevent the beaches from overcrowding, Susan added: ‘I would say that the majority of people who headed to the beach were from out of town, because I know that our residents generally understand what is going on in this pandemic.

‘We have the elderly locking themselves [in] and keeping themselves shielded. We have vulnerable children also shielding. We’ve been supporting the National Health [Service] through this problem and really I think it was very, very bad for people to take this risk. There has been threatened a second pandemic and if we only look at Wales, if we think about China, if we think about Germany, they already are seeing this.’

She continued: ‘It’s not in our gift as the Council to carry out any of the suggestions that you made, but obviously I will be working with whom I can to share that.’

On if it’s actually the government’s responsibility to control overcrowding of beaches, Ms Phillips continued: ‘I’m always lobbying our MPs. Tobias [Ellwood] has been on, he’s given his opinion, and also MP Conor Burns, and I shall be lobbying them after this recording today.

‘If we just look out to the bay, we’ve got cruise ships that are anchored, that have actually been so for quite a while now. We’ve had three and when we think that they’re being anchored without travelling and partying abroad really, there’s a message that speaks out loud and clear.’

Ms Phillips also had a clear message to the nation, saying: ‘I am saying please, stay away from Bournemouth. Stay away from Bournemouth please. Please.’

And commenting on the piles of rubbish left behind on Bournemouth beach yesterday, she said: ‘Please take your rubbish home, but in the first instance please don’t visit Bournemouth until this pandemic and this epidemic, and our ratings, are improving because we are heading, if we carry on like that, for a second pandemic.’

Environment Secretary George Eustice said he has been to the beach recently and saw people following the rules. 

He told BBC Breakfast: ‘I went to Bournemouth beach myself with my family a couple of weeks ago and actually people were observing social distancing and there were certain vendors open for business and they had put in place particular measures to make sure there was social distancing as well.

‘Clearly yesterday we had droves of people going to the beach in very large numbers, that was much more difficult.’

He added: ‘As Matt Hancock has said, we do have powers to put in place closures should that be necessary.’

Local MP Tobias Ellwood, speaking from Bournemouth beach, said: ‘This place was deluged and social distancing went out the window and that’s why a major incident was declared, because the local authority and indeed the police couldn’t cope.’

He told BBC Breakfast: ‘The beach should have been closed down, or at least shut down to prevent further people from entering it.

‘We need to learn from this and recognise that if we’re going to be serious about tackling this pandemic then we need to be swifter in being able to provide support to local authorities who are unable to cope.’

Mr Ellwood asked for local authorities to be given more help to deal with incidents as lockdown measures are lifted.

He told the BBC: ‘I really would urge the creation of a national situation centre that can monitor events across the country.

‘Don’t forget on July 4 we’re going to add alcohol to this equation as well, and I would hate to see Bournemouth or any seaside resort become that place where the second spike is the first to appear.

‘That can only be avoided if local authorities are given the necessary and swift support. That means in an emergency being able to respond to requests for help, that didn’t happen yesterday.’

Mr Ellwood added: ‘We need to make sure no beach is seen like we saw yesterday, those scenes were unacceptable given this enduring pandemic.

‘Until there’s a vaccine we should not be seeing behaviour like this. If a local authority cannot help, cannot manage on its own, it needs additional support and it needs that support swiftly.’

Official figures released yesterday suggested that the retreat of the coronavirus pandemic has stalled and the number of people infected in the UK may even have risen.

Professor Whitty stressed: ‘If we do not follow social distancing guidance then cases will rise again. Naturally people will want to enjoy the sun but we need to do so in a way that is safe for all.’ 

It came ahead of a crucial week for the Government, which has announced lockdown measures will be eased significantly on July 4 to boost the struggling economy. Boris Johnson said on Tuesday that ministers would ‘trust in the common sense ‘ of the British public when rules are eased.

Families visiting some beaches did attempt to follow social distancing rules – but that proved impossible in Bournemouth, where the area was overrun for the second day running.

Car parks were full by 9am and hundreds parked illegally on pavements and double yellow lines. Traffic wardens issued a record 558 parking fines. 

An astonishing 33 tons of litter, including human waste, was removed from the stretch of Dorset coast yesterday. Some illegally camped on the beach, including at upmarket Sandbanks, and used it as a toilet.

Detectives revealed the chaos caused by a ‘significant volume of people heading to one area’, where some people were so eager to get a good spot that they camped overnight on the beach. Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council said services were ‘completely overstretched’ as huge crowds of visitors defied advice to stay away. 

Incidents of anti-social behaviour included drunken fights and staff manning road barriers to turn motorists away from full car parks further along the coast at Lulworth Cove were sworn and spat at.

By yesterday afternoon the situation was so serious that council leader Vikki Slade declared a ‘major incident’.

She said she was ‘absolutely appalled’ at the beach scenes, adding: ‘The irresponsible behaviour and actions of so many people is just shocking and our services are stretched to the absolute hilt trying to keep everyone safe.’

Tobias Ellwood, the Tory MP for Bournemouth East, was told by police there were 500,000 visitors in Dorset yesterday. He said: ‘These are selfish people who are threatening to prolong the pandemic and also litter our beautiful beaches.’

The beach was also busy along the coast at Brighton, where hundreds of youths gathered on an area of green yesterday evening, chanting at police attempting to move them on. Other seaside flashpoints included police being called to a ‘large group of people fighting’ at the beach in Exmouth, Devon, the same evening. 

In Plymouth, police were out in force around the waterfront after heatwave-related ‘unacceptable behaviour’ by large groups of people.

And in Southend-on-Sea in Essex a seafront brawl and other incidents of violence prompted deputy council leader Ron Woodley to call for the Army to reinforce police to regain control of the streets.

The hottest temperatures so far this year have prompted a warning from United Utilities to households to cut water usage or face a hosepipe ban. With children cooling down in paddling pools and parched flower beds needing watering, levels are receding at reservoirs in parts of the country. 

Meanwhile, working Britons took to social media to claim the furlough scheme – where the Government agrees to pay 80 per cent of an employee’s salary during the Covid-19 crisis – should be scrapped because too many staff off work are heading to the coast.

At the start of the crisis, Chancellor Rishi Sunak revealed the furlough scheme to protect jobs, and the Treasury is now paying 7.5million workers to stay at home which the Institute for Fiscal Studies estimates will cost £100billion.

There was a major alert for a high risk of sunburn in the South West yesterday with the absence of aircraft in the skies set to give the UK its highest levels of ultraviolet radiation because of a reduction in plane contrails. 

The Met Office said UV rays, which can increase the risk of skin cancer, could reach nine in Devon and Cornwall, which is ‘about as high as it gets really in the UK’ and are more commonly seen in the Mediterranean.

Both Wales and Scotland also recorded their hottest days of the year so far yesterday. In Wales, the mercury soared to 87F (30.7C) at Gogerddan, near Aberystwyth – eclipsing a previous high of 86F (30C) from Wednesday.  In Northern Ireland, highs of 78F (25.5C) were recorded in Aldegrove.   

Dorset Police Assistant Chief Constable Sam de Reya said yesterday: ‘These are unprecedented times and we are urging people to stay away from the area of Bournemouth beach and other Dorset beaches.

‘We continue to work very closely with BCP council and other partners to ensure the safety of the public. We are also deploying additional resources to provide increased patrols in the vicinity to help tackle any issues of anti-social behaviour and other offences being committed.’The declaration of a major incident allows us to bring agencies together so we can take actions available to us to safeguard the public as much as possible.

‘We are also reliant on people taking personal responsibility and strongly advise members of the public to think twice before heading to the area. Clearly we are still in a public health crisis and such a significant volume of people heading to one area places a further strain on emergency services resources. 

‘This influx of visitors to our area places a significant increase in demand on our service and we would ask people to please bear with us. We would therefore stress again that we are asking people to please stay away from the area.’ 

Mr Ellwood said Dorset Police and the local council were unable to cope amid reports of 500,000 visitors and two-hour traffic jams, with cars queuing back for 15 miles along the A338 and A31.

Many motorists have been parking illegally on double yellow lines, over cycle lanes and on pavements, seemingly happy to take a £35 parking ticket rather than queue and wait for a space. 

Speaking amid the chaos, the MP said: ‘Bournemouth is deluged with visitors and the local authority cannot cope.

‘We have the perfect storm of incredible weather and a liberation of some Covid-19 guidelines and given the wider consequences of a second spike, the government needs to offer assistance and respond to this dangerous event that is happening within a national health emergency.

‘It is beyond the local capabilities to be able to control the roads and manage the situation. Volunteers and traffic marshalls can only do so much to get people to cooperate and move along.

‘It is important that Westminster sees what is happening on the frontline and responds with assets to provide support.

‘When you have mass demonstrations in London the Metropolitan Police can call on other forces to help and I think this is what needs to happen here. The police locally are overwhelmed, they cannot be everywhere. The number of police officers is based on the number of residents in the county, not visitors.’  

Stephen Allen, a resident of Sandbanks, said: ‘It is the illegal camping that gets us. You see people coming out of their tents in their pyjamas and head off into the sand tunes with toilet roll. It is very unpleasant.

‘There has been illegal parking happening all over the place. Cars have parked on cycle lanes, double yellow lines and on the pavements. 

‘They would happily take a £35 parking fine rather than queue for hours on end for a car park space which will probably cost them the best part of £10.’

Further along the Dorset coast at Lulworth, a local councillor told of the abuse she received when she tried to turn people away because the area was full.

The local authority agreed to set up road barriers when the main car parks at Lulworth Cove and Durdle Door become full.

Laura Miller has been manning one of the barriers. She said: ‘I have been shouted and sworn at and one guy spat at me. These are people who have travelled three or four hours in their car, they are hot and grumpy and then they are turned away.

‘Some drivers have ignored our barriers and just knocked them over and driven through.’

She said that the beach at Durdle Door resembled the aftermath of a music festival last night. She said: ‘The behaviour of some visitors has been foul. There are large groups of people who are totally ignoring social distancing rules.  

‘We filled up 30 bin bags of rubbish and the beach stinks of weed. It was like the aftermath of a festival. Most of the visitors have come from London but others have travelled from Birmingham, Bristol and Peterborough.’

Some working Britons claimed the furlough scheme – where the Government agrees to pay 80 per cent of an employee’s salary during the Covid-19 crisis – should be scrapped because too many staff off work are heading to the coast and making social distancing impossible, raising the chilling prospect of a second wave of the virus. 

‘Not only am I putting myself and husband at risk and unable to see my children and grandchildren, but feel it is so unfair that we are hit with tax bills despite all these individuals enjoying the sunshine and being paid [while] I swelter at work in full PPE to maintain services in urgent care.’ 

Paul Dulson, from Bournemouth, Dorset, tweeted: ‘I live a few miles from Bournemouth beach and do not visit because of this madness. A great case for ending the ridiculous furlough and getting kids back to school.’

Another added: ‘Why are the people not at work? Oh, that’s right, they all on furlough receiving 80 per cent of their salary paid for by me, to go to the f***ing beach. Meanwhile the likes of me is working my a*** off in this heat.’

And a third said: ‘Just end the furlough scheme now. It’s there to protect jobs whilst we protect ourselves. We’re obviously not wanting to protect ourselves anymore, so let’s just stop paying people to sit on the b****y beach.’

At the start of the crisis, Chancellor Rishi Sunak revealed the furlough scheme to protect jobs, and the Treasury is now paying 7.5million workers to stay at home which the Institute for Fiscal Studies estimates will cost £100billion.

There was a tragedy in Worthing, West Sussex, yesterday as a woman in her 50s died after suffering a ‘medical episode’ on the beach. Tourists were evacuated to make way for the air ambulance but she could not be saved.  

However the warm weather took a dramatic turn yesterday afternoon as thunderstorms broke out across the South West of England at around 4.30pm, when up to 1.6 inches of rain was expected to fall in two hours.

Storms were also forecast to form in the south west and south east of England, Wales, western Scotland and Northern Ireland from 4pm.

The Met Office has issued a yellow weather alert for those areas, warning of disruption due to flooding, lightning strikes, hail and wind.

The storms are expected to continue from midday today through to 6am tomorrow, with another yellow warning in place for the whole of the UK. 

Areas hit by the storms could experience ‘torrential downpours’ with up to 2in (50mm) of rain falling in an hour.  

There was also a high alert for dangerous UV radiation levels on the hottest day of the year yesterday. 

Met Office meteorologist Alex Burkill said: ‘The sun is as strong as it gets at the moment because we’re so close to the solstice. We’ve got peak sun strength, clear skies, plenty of sunshine – it’s the perfect ingredients for high UV.’ 

Among the main reasons for high UV levels given by experts are a hole in the ozone layer that opened earlier this year, and the time of year so near the solstice combined with limited cloud cover and water vapour.

But Michaela Hegglin, a professor in atmospheric chemistry at the University of Reading, added it was also down to a lack of plane contrails, which normally create clouds reflecting UV rays away from the ground.

The expert told the Telegraph the negative impacts of UV levels were massively outweighed by the positive impacts of lower levels of air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions during the coronavirus crisis.

She said yesterday could have had some of the ‘highest UV levels ever recorded’ in Britain, adding: ‘This is because of a combination of factors. We are at the summer solstice, when the sun is almost directly overhead at 1pm.

‘UV levels this high are rare in the UK, so people with light skin should be very careful to avoid getting burnt. While UV is important for getting vitamin D and keeping us healthy, too much of it can cause skin cancer or cataracts.’

Ozone holes are an annual thinning of the ozone layer over Antarctica, caused by stratospheric chlorine. Every year ozone layers fall drastically during the Southern Hemisphere’s spring and the Arctic can be affected too. 

Experts think this started happening in the 1970s as a result of the use of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), which were popularly found in aerosols. The hole forms in the Antarctic when cold air is trapped by strong circulating winds.

This leads to the formation of ice clouds, which break down chlorine-containing compounds. It makes the area especially susceptible to ozone depletion, but ozone from other areas returns over the affected poles every year. 

The public has been reminded to take care around water throughout the summer, amid concerns people might be tempted to take a dip to cool down.

It comes as Thames Valley Police said on Wednesday evening they had found a body following a search for a missing man at Lulle Brooke in Cookham, Berkshire. 

The man, who was in his 30s, was understood to have got into difficulty in the water on Tuesday evening.

A cousin said Syrian refugee Eyad Al Ryabi had gone into the water on Tuesday evening to try to help his friend. The friend survived and was taken to hospital, Thames Valley Police said.

Meanwhile a man in Middlesbrough was taken to hospital after jumping into shallow water at a popular beauty spot.

Volunteers from Cleveland Mountain Rescue team were finishing a ‘litter sweep’ when they came across the incident a Cod Beck reservoir, near Osmotherley, North Yorkshire, yesterday.  

A 21-year-old man suffered a leg injury after he jumped into the water and was unable to walk.

A spokesman for the Cleveland Mountain Rescue Team said ‘the water was a lot shallower than he expected’ and as a result, was in a lot of pain.

The man was being treated by ambulance crews at the scene when rescue team arrived. Volunteers transported the ambulance stretcher to the patient while a doctor helped to treat him.

Once loaded on to the stretcher, the team helped push the injured man to a waiting ambulance. He was then taken to hospital for further treatment. Eight mountain rescuers and two response co-ordinators involved in the incident for around 40 minutes.

Others were on standby from their training locations but were not required. Crews are now warning people of the dangers of jumping into water.

The spokesman added: ‘It is perhaps worth reminding people about some of the risks of jumping into water – it might be shallower than they think and ‘cold water shock’ is a very, real danger. Put simply – it’s very dangerous – don’t do it.’ 

The good weather saw people flock to beaches in huge numbers despite social distancing measures remaining in place.

The Met Office raised its heat alert level to three, as health authorities encouraged those most vulnerable – many of whom have been shielding during lockdown – to protect themselves amid the ‘exceptionally hot weather forecast this week’. 

Public Health England (PHE) said older people, those with underlying health conditions, and very young children were all more at risk from the higher temperatures.

The amber level three, which remains in place for the West and East Midlands, requires social and healthcare services to target specific actions at high-risk groups, according to the Met Office website.

People have been advised to keep cool and stay hydrated where possible. The Met Office said UV levels were expected to remain at eight across many parts of the UK yesterday.

Emer O’Connell, consultant in public health at PHE, said it was important that people kept checking on the vulnerable, as many continued to spend more time at home due to coronavirus.

‘You will need to do things differently this year, for example keeping in touch by phone,’ she said. 

Shoppers have also been advised to be aware they could be forced to spend extra time in the sun as a result of social distancing measures.

And dog owners have been urged to avoid exercising their pets during the hottest part of the day. 

Vets Now, a provider of emergency veterinary care, warned that the average survival rate of a dog diagnosed with heatstroke was 50 per cent. 

The RSPCA said it had received 330 calls in regard to animal welfare and the hot weather since March 23, adding it was expecting ‘hundreds more’ as temperatures increase this week. 

Meanwhile, the AA has urged drivers to check their tyre pressure and coolant levels before leaving home following an increase in heat-related breakdowns.

AA president Edmund King said: ‘With the combination of the severe heat, cars that have been in lockdown and millions of vehicles that have delayed their MoTs, the AA has seen more breakdowns.’

And fire chiefs said they wanted to ‘debunk this myth’ that hand sanitiser left in hot cars could pose a fire risk.

Roy Wilsher, National Fire Chiefs Council chair said: ‘We want to reassure people that this product will not combust if left in a car – even on the hottest day. For hand sanitiser to cause a fire it would need to come into contact with a spark.

‘Hand sanitiser is very important in the fight against the spread of Covid-19, therefore it is is essential we debunk this myth.’

People are advised to keep their hand sanitisers containers closed and out of direct sunlight and ensure they keep it away from any naked flame.

London Fire Brigade has warned people not to have barbecues on dry grass, not to drop cigarettes or matches, and not to leave rubbish such as glass bottles lying around amid a risk they could start fires.

In Dorset, stunned officials in Bournemouth today slammed ‘vile idiots’ who left 20 tons of litter strewn across the resort’s beaches following the hottest day of the year.

They blamed a ‘breakdown in decent, civic behaviour’ for the appalling mass of rubbish left behind by over 100,000 visitors – and volunteer litter pickers found many of the public bins were still half empty. 

Shocking pictures taken at 4.30am yesterday morning before the local council’s beach cleaning team arrived to clear the mess have sparked fury on social media.

Ms Slade, the leader of Bournemouth Christchurch and Poole Council, said: ‘It doesn’t matter what we do, these vile idiots will ignore the rules. The disgusting mess left on our beaches makes me want to weep.

‘People urinating within sight of loos, parking illegally and just accepting the fine and ignoring the message of don’t come to Dorset is a breakdown of civic behaviour.’

One of the litter pickers on the beach was Peter Ryan, 61, who founded the community group Dorset Devils.

He said: ‘It is sad, disappointing and disgusting to see the beach in such a state. It is the jewel in the crown of the area and it does not deserve to be treated like this.

‘There were so many empty beer bottles, vodka bottles and cans of all varieties left on the sand, even though some of the bins on the pier were half empty. They’ve shown no care whatsoever for this beautiful environment.’ 

Claire Shouksmith told the Bournemouth Echo that she saw ‘several piles of human faeces, toilet paper and nappies’, dog mess, urine stains down the pavements, cars still badly parked yesterday and a ‘disgusting’ stench.

At the beach, she said there was ‘masses of rubbish’, a ‘stench of urine and more faeces’, dog mess in the sand despite not being allowed on that part of the beach, campfire debris and broken beer bottles on the sand.

She said: ‘I’ve lived here for 14 years it’s usually lovely, clean and peaceful, busy when the weather hot but never have I seen the place left in this horrific state. Why the hell do people think they can use the streets as a toilet? 

‘The actual toliets are open all day! When did just leaving your rubbish anywhere become acceptable behaviour and as for the campfires in the sandbleft for people to walk through and burn their feet, I’m lost for words.’

In the North West police foiled an illegal rave on the beach, seizing a generator, a DJ mixing deck and 20 speakers. Five arrests were made as well as 60 parking tickets issued and 15 dispersal notices at Formby beach, Merseyside.

A section 34 Dispersal Zone was put in place until 2.30pm today as a direct response to the number of people flocking there in the hot weather.