Vehicle set on fire at East Street as part of Bonfire Night event

I was contacted last night by residents who were angry that once again a vehicle has been set on fire on land at East Street and First Street as part of an unauthorised bonfire night event. This follows a similar incident last year at the same location when an abandoned car was taken to the site and added to the bonfire.

I'd already been in touch with the authorities yesterday morning to alert them to the event and I'd asked them to monitor developments as best they could and manage any risks to health and safety that might occur. This followed concerns raised with me earlier in the day by concerned residents in the village.

I called down to the site early this morning to see for myself the damage left behind after last night's events. I saw a burnt out vehicle abandoned on the green and reported it straight away to the authorities with a request that it is removed as soon as possible and that any debris left behind is cleared.

From the many calls and messages I've received since last night it's clear there is significant anger throughout the village that a relatively small group of people seem quite happy to cause as much damage as they like and ruin the fun for everyone else.

Like a lot of people I think Bonfire Night or Guy Fawkes Night is a great opportunity to get together with friends and family. It's become an established English tradition over the past 400 years and I think it’s important that it should be preserved. However, the security, health and safety of residents must always come first, and none of the residents living in the streets nearby felt particularly safe or secure last night.

No one wants to stamp out what has become a time-honoured tradition, but equally no one wants to see vehicles dragged onto public open spaces and set alight - especially when the fire was so close to residential properties in East Street, First Street and Aspatria Avenue.

I have a scheduled meeting early next week with the community safety team, alongside the police, neighbourhood wardens and other agencies, as part of our regular street walkabouts in and around the villages. When we get together I'll raise with them residents' concerns about the events of last night and I'll ask them to look at ways to prevent a repeat of last night's mayhem. Bearing in mind that the safety of our children and young people is paramount I think all options should be up for consideration. 

If you have any issues you would like me to raise with the community safety team about what happened last night (or anything else for that matter) please contact me at: rob.crute@durham.gov.uk and I'll make sure your ideas and comments are taken into consideration.