Stillingfleet residents claim ravers 'defecated on village green'

One villager, Suzanne McCloud, said witnesses in Stillingfleet had seen people ‘defecating’ on the village green.

“Someone saw four young people getting out of a car, defecating on the green, and then getting back into the car and lighting some joints,” she said.

Police have now arrested nine people in connection with the rave at the former Stillingfleet mine, which started at about 10.30pm on Saturday and went on right though the night and into the next morning.

The nine, all men in their 20s and 30s, have been released on bail while police inquiries continue.

But as reported in The Press, it was not until about 1pm on Sunday that police seized and impounded several vans full of music equipment.

Suzanne McCloud, left, and John page at the entrance to the former Stillingfleet Mine, where the rave was held (Image: Stephen Lewis)

Suzanne says she believes the rave was specifically arranged for the Coronation weekend, when organisers knew police may be on coronation duties, and council offices would be closed.

“We knew that the police would probably be in force down in London, so we probably had a small amount of police available to deal with something like this.

“Who do you call? Usually you call the council, but council officers won’t be open on a bank holiday weekend.

“There was no-one to report to. People were dialling 111 or 999 and nothing was happening because there was no-one to tell. It was quite frightening really.

“We need a point of contact should anything like this ever happen again, with the owners of the site, or the police, or something.

“We were totally vulnerable and not knowing who to turn to for imformation or advice."

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John Page, another villager, said the rave had clearly been organised, with reports of two stages, and about 1,000 people attending.

John, whose house is near to the former Stillingfleet mine, said the bass thud of the music had gone on all night and into the early hours.

Images of the rave at Stillingfleet from social media (Image: Social media)

“It was like a bass drum being beaten every second for 12 hours,” he said.

“It was very uncomfortable. Physically uncomfortable. It was not so much just not being able to sleep. You could feel every thud in your body. It was very invasive.”

He said when the police put an end to the rave it came as a "huge relief".

John said: “We had heard all sorts of rumours that the party goers expected to be there for three days. It was expected to go on all the way until this morning (Tuesday)."

Suzanne said it wasn't only the loud music that made villagers angry and scared - it was also the constant traffic thoughout the night.

She said: "Our village is very, very quiet. We had a lot of traffic that night, constantly through the village, (taxis) dropping kids off and people off, and people walking through the village. It's frightening when we've got elderly and disabled people in our village."

Many villagers remained anxious even after the rave, she said – especially after some commenters on social media accused them of being ‘grasses’.

One commented: “Maybe the local residents should get a grip, stop being grasses and leave people to have their bank holiday fun.”

Suzanne said: “We do feel harassed and worried about the implications."

North Yorkshire Police have said that the local Neighbourhood Policing Team will be in the area in the coming days, to provide reassurance.

County councillor John Cattanach, meanwhile, says he has spoken to Chief Constable Lisa Winward about the event, and will be speaking to the local police commander in Selby.