Staff at a Londonderry business have been described their shock at arriving for work to find a massive Halloween rave had taken place on the premises.
Employees at the All Class Joinery Business said they were amazed to find windows smashed and the building littered with bottles, cans and ‘weed bags’ as the last of the party goers left at around 8.30am yesterday.
Around 200 revellers descended on an unoccupied middle section of the warehouse building at the Springtown Industrial Estate after tickets were allegedly sold on the internet for £10-per-head.
And in a bizarre twist, the organisers even sealed off the front part of the building which is currently being turned into a creche, to prevent party goers gaining access.
A baffled spokesman for the Derry joinery business confirmed today that the front part of the building had remained untouched.
He said, however, that damage totalling several thousand pounds had been caused after some of those attending the rave broke several double glazed window panels.
Speaking as staff finished off cleaning up the mess left behind, the spokesman said: “It was all very well thought out and there were taxis still delivering and collecting people there at 8.30am this morning.
“By the time we arrived there was only one boy and he was that far gone that his story was the Starship Enterprise had left him there.”
He also said that in hindsight, staff at the joinery business had heard of previous Halloween raves and wished they had taken more measures such as keeping their ear to the ground or checking the internet.
While stating that he understood police resources were directed to more serious incidents, the company spokesman hit out at those taxi drivers who continued to ferry people to and from the rave throughout the night.
“They just took the money and ran,” he said.
Billy Page, Sinn Fein councillor for the area, speaking about the illegal rave, said: “These premises are not suitable for entertainment and do not meet the health and safety regulations and I would dread to think what would have happened if a fire broke out while the rave was on.”
A PSNI spokesman said that resources could not be deployed at the time the rave was reported because officers were responding to various serious incidents.
He said: “In the case of the rave, this was an event that was over by the time police received a report and this was balanced with other needs.
“While we appreciate the frustration that can arise when an incident like this occurs and damage is caused, we believe the community will understand that potentially life-threatening incidents must take precedence.”
