More on KentOnline
More on KentOnline
A woman wearing clown makeup and posing for a photoshoot on a bridge prompted an emergency response and landed her with a lockdown fine.
The clown and her partner were just two of 86 fines handed out over the weekend, with a beach birthday party and a car rally also broken up by officers.
The clown incident saw the Gracious Lane crossing over the A21 Sevenoaks Bypass shut to traffic just before 5pm on Sunday after a member of the public spotted the woman on the wrong side of the safety barrier.
She was spoken to and it transpired she was being snapped for her social media page. Her and her photographer were fined.
In addition to the Sevenoaks couple, a beach party led to five people being fined in Folkestone.
Officers were called to Marine Parade at 10pm on Sunday following reports of men fighting. Upon arrival it transpired the group were holding a birthday party for a friend and all five men were fined.
A car rally in Greenhithe resulted in a group of men being fined on Saturday evening.
Officers received numerous calls from members of the public concerned about motorists in Charles Street, in addition to breaching coronavirus regulations it was reported the group were driving dangerously. Officers attended and fined five men.
Good weather resulted in large visitor numbers flocking to various popular locations around the county this weekend and this has prompted officers to remind people of the importance of lockdown regulations and government guidance to only travel for essential reasons and to stay local.
Large groups, and reports of people failing to socially distance, were received concerning locations including Knole Park, Sevenoaks, Bedgebury Pinetum, Mote Park, Maidstone, Whitstable, Broadstairs and Herne Bay.
Since Covid-19 restrictions became law in March 2020 1,975 people have been fined in Kent.
Assistant Chief Constable Claire Nix said: "The warmer weekend naturally resulted in more people wanting to visit some of the more popular destinations in the county. Whilst this is understandable, with the current situation, I would ask people to carefully consider the impact that their actions may have.
"Many locations are closing their car parks, toilet facilities and take-away cafés in an effort to try and keep visitor numbers to a minimum and clearly this will have a knock-on effect if you are planning a visit.
"The limitations are only being placed on these locations in an attempt to stop the spread of Covid-19 and keep people safe. By attending in large numbers people are putting unnecessary strain on the emergency services and other agencies and I would ask for people to be considerate and not travel unless necessary and to stay local.
"Whilst nationally the picture is improving with the infection rate dropping, more people being vaccinated and fewer Covid-19 deaths recorded, as a nation, we are not quite out of the woods yet. Though I completely understand the desire to get outside to these popular destinations I would ask people for patience and restraint until the regulations are lifted so eventually we can enjoy the freedom of meeting our friends and family without the fear of spreading coronavirus."
