Police have issued dispersal orders on two Bournemouth piers after thousands of Brits flocked to the beaches during the hottest day of the year.
A 'major incident' was declared by the council today after local services were 'stretched to the absolute hilt.'
Police are now increasing patrols in the area and urging people to stay away.
The dispersal orders will allow police to ask anyone they suspect may cause trouble to leave the area.
Video and images from the scene show the shocking amount of people who have flooded the beaches.
Police have also been reporting fights, heavy littering and heavily congested roads due to the volume of visitors.
Yesterday crews collected eight tonnes of waste on a small part of the beach, and have today collected a further 33 tonnes of waste along the coastline.
Council Leader Vikki Slade said: “We are absolutely appalled at the scenes witnessed on our beaches, particularly at Bournemouth and Sandbanks, in the last 24-48 hours.
"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. We have had no choice now but to declare a major incident and initiate an emergency response.”
Assistant Chief Constable Sam de Reya, of Dorset Police, said: “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.”
