Dorset Police finally shut down illegal Easter Sunday rave after 21 hours

Some attendees crossed into nearby military training sites to get to the rave, police say

Police in Dorset broke up an illegal rave that had been going on for hours on Sunday (Getty Images)

An illegal rave with attracted hundreds of people has been broken up by police after around 21 hours.

Dorset Police said it “took some time” to shut the event down due to its scale and having to disperse a “high number of people”.

The force said it was made aware of an unauthorised gathering in the East Lulworth area, believed to have attracted around 1,000 attendees.

Dorset Police said it was first contacted about the event after midnight on Sunday.

Sam de Reya, deputy chief constable, said: “Understandably, we have received a number of calls from concerned and upset residents who have had their sleep disturbed by the noise levels coming from the illegal event.”

He added: “As there are army training sites in the area, those attending the event are potentially putting themselves in danger by crossing these locations. There is also an amber wildfire risk and Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue are providing robust advice to not have open campfires or use BBQs in the open countryside.”

The force has earlier said it was working to end the event on Sunday afternoon, with police having entered the site and telling people to leave.

It confirmed the rave had been broken up in a later statement around 9pm.

DCC de Reya said officers had broken up the event using powers under the Public Order Act.

“Due to the large scale of the event and the inherent impact of dispersing such high number of people, this process took some time,” he said.

“In our operations we always have to balance enforcement activities with the safety of our officers and all those involved. Making sure that a site is cleared without any escalation or moving the risk to our road network is always a difficult process.”

The deputy chief constable thanked the local community “for their patience” while police dealt with the incident.