Villagers’ fury after travellers with bulldozers and diggers tear up green belt field in Easter bank holiday land grab
Residents were outraged after travelers broke into a beauty spot and destroyed it with bulldozers and diggers.
Villagers in Flamstead, Hertfordshire, say they saw the machines being driven into green belt land on Friendless Lane on Thursday, before caravans followed suit on Easter Sunday morning.
The group, understood to be travellers, laid huge concrete areas on the site, visible in astonishing drone footage.
The work outraged local residents; An unnamed church council member claimed that the passengers had damaged cars and used iron rods to force their way into the area.
he said Telegram: ‘Around 7 o’clock (on Sunday), a lot of passengers rushed in.
‘There was a lot of violent abuse and threats, people were held up with iron rods, several cars were damaged, they crashed into a police car. They started bringing in truckloads of crushed concrete.’
Local residents estimate that people carrying supplies to the site made about 300 trips. In one incident, a police car allegedly went off the road at this time.
The travelers arrived three days after the diggers, despite Dacorum Town Council issuing a temporary stop notice – a planning enforcement tool used to stop work – on Saturday.
Villagers were outraged when a group thought to be wanderers entered a field near Friendless Lane in Hertfordshire and began laying concrete (pictured).
Diggers and bulldozers are said to have set up shop in the area on Thursday, with caravans and cars following suit on Sunday.
Villagers said they felt ‘invaded’ in a situation they described as ‘absolutely horrific’
Villagers also did their best to prevent vehicles from entering the beauty spot. Reports suggest that a tree was cut down in an attempt to block a nearby road on Saturday, but it remains unclear who cut down the foliage.
A citizen told BBC: ‘Minibuses and caravans were coming towards us and they were basically hitting people.
‘They were determined to overtake us and were really aggressive. “It was absolutely terrifying.”
Another described feeling like his village had been ‘invaded’ in a situation that was ‘an absolute nightmare’.
Locals have since launched a ‘legal’ protest as work in the area was reported to be continuing at around 9am this morning. It is not yet known who owns the area.
Local police force Hertfordshire Constabulary said it was in the process of reviewing ongoing incidents on Friendless Lane over the Easter weekend.
The statement made by Dacorum Borough Council said: ‘We have been informed of unauthorized hard-core stone laying on privately owned land on Friendless Lane, Flamstead, Hertfordshire, on Friday 3 April.
‘We have continued to assess the situation and, due to the extent and pace of work being carried out on the Chilterns National Landscape, we issued a temporary stop notice requiring work at the site to cease immediately on Saturday 4 April. This is a formal legal step and any violation of this notice may result in further sanctions.
‘We have continued to investigate and gather evidence with a view to taking immediate legal action if necessary.
‘Today (Sunday, April 5), Dacorum District Council applied to the court for an urgent injunction for the site. This order was successfully granted by the court and the Council served documents on the site today seeking to prohibit any unauthorized operation or use of the site.
Dacorum District Council said an emergency injunction was issued by the court to stop work on the site.
Local residents estimate that people carrying supplies to the site made about 300 trips
‘We now need to wait for the court’s scheduled hearing date before further legal action can be taken.’
Hertfordshire Constabulary said: ‘While the civil matter is being managed by Dacorum Borough Council we continue to monitor the situation and a police presence remains in the area to prevent breaches of the peace and deal with any criminal matters.
‘A number of allegations have been made by various parties involved, including criminal damage, traffic offenses and threatening behavior, and these are being investigated in accordance with normal protocol.
‘We are in the process of taking statements and reviewing body worn video and once this is completed we will seek to make arrests where necessary.
‘Under these circumstances, the police have no enforcement powers to prevent access to the land or construction work being carried out.’
