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Wales Online
Wales Online
National
Annie Owen

Heatwave chaos sees police 'constantly' called to fighting, anti-social behaviour and parking rows in Welsh town

Police in a popular tourist town have been under "constant demand" as they dealt with fighting, parking rows and anti-social behaviour. Officers have said that the high temperatures and an influx of visitors to Llangollen meant it was an "extremely busy" weekend in the town.

Local people have also complained about the amount of litter that was thrown into the river.

It came as temperatures rose above 34°C in some parts of Wales, and thousands of visitors flocked to the region to enjoy the summer sun. According to NWP, the conditions meant there was a "constant demand" for police presence in Llangollen over the weekend, with issues ranging from fighting near the river to shoplifting.

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Other crimes included anti-social behaviour, a hate-related incident, and parking issues. A police spokesman said: "Whilst officers were all dealing with reports as they were coming in, there were also various other anti-social behaviour and miscellaneous crimes, as well as an RTC (road traffic accident), and disorder at Public Houses, all of which resulted in police resources being required."

He added: "Despite a proactive policing operation being implemented in anticipation of a busy weekend and the promised good weather, incidents that occur simultaneously can never be predicted, and officers worked hard to deal with the multiple challenges they faced. We are pleased to report that we received many positive comments regarding the town, from the visitors that we spoke to over the weekend."

However, some locals vented their frustration about issues in the Denbighshire town. Local Facebook page, Llan-Advocate Community, pleaded for more to be done to minimise crime and disruption in the town.

A post on the page said: "Despite assurances of higher profile policing to curb antisocial behaviour, better visitor management and traffic enforcement officers in the locality, today saw reports of fighting, theft and abusive behaviour which finally resulted in a police presence in the town. And let’s not forget the littering down on the river too."

A car parked on the pavement in Llangollen town centre (Llan-Advocate Community Facebook page)
A car parked on a pedestrianised area of Bridge Street, Llangollen (Llan-Advocate Community Facebook page)

Pictures shared to social media showed crowds of people gathering in the town centre, along with a number of patrolling police officers. The pictures also show vehicles which appear to be parked on the pavement, which were widened in a bid to make the town more pedestrian-friendly.

Responding to the pictures, one person commented: "So much for the lovely wide pavements for easy walking." Whilst another said: "What gets into peoples heads? It was always going to be the case that the wider the pavements, the wider the groups dominating them would be, and passers by would be as good as forced onto the road to get past.

"And where are the safe crossing places- they should be clearly marked. How can parents teach their children to cross safely. Are our odd arrangements an acceptable part of the Highway Code or the green cross code."

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