Stamford Hill rave: Organisers defend massive illegal street party arranged on Snapchat
Hundreds of youngsters flocked to Stamford Hill for the rave. (Picture: Lydia Darling). - Credit: Archant
Organisers of a huge illegal street party in Stamford Hill that saw police pelted with missiles have said they were just out for a good time.
Police march on the Stamford Hill block party (Picture: J Allinson) - Credit: Archant
Events turned ugly when officers pulled the plug on the music and confiscated the generator, angering some of the 400 who had lined the streets for the “block party”.
Footage emerged showing riot police moving in to shut down the event and being met with missiles that left some nursing injuries.
Horrified witnesses said children as young as eight were throwing glass bottles, but some neighbours said the event – largely publicised through Snapchat – had been good-natured until then.
One organiser of the rave, which was advertised far and wide via mobile app Snapchat, said guests were just after a good time. The unnamed man said: “We do this every year and hundreds of people came down to enjoy it from south, west, east... There were people as old as 80 there. Police were disturbing us for no reason at all.”
Footage shows missiles being thrown at the police. (Picture: J Allinson). - Credit: Archant
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Police, who had warned revellers to stay away from the unlicensed rave, made no arrests as it continued into the early hours.
One woman who watched events “turn nasty” said she felt sorry for the outnumbered cops: “All the officers had to run for cover into the van. They drove off while being chased. It was absolute carnage! Even the eight-year-olds were throwing bottles.”
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The rave followed another party at nearby Millfields Park on Sunday night, attended by 400 people and described as “louder than war” by one disgruntled neighbour.
It drew dozens of complaints to the council’s noise pollution team and police but was not stopped. Council officers did attend but were powerless to shut it down. Police said it was the town hall’s responsibility.
Attendee Joe Zadeh, editor of music website Noisey, defended the rave. He told the Gazette: “It was super friendly, the music was ‘sick’ and everyone just seemed to be having the absolute time of their lives.”
An angry neighbour said had it been well-publicised the rave would have been acceptable, but it was the second year running it had happened. He added: “It is tough to digest that a full-on, illegal event in the heart of a massively residential area had ZERO consequences. There was a stage for f**** sake.”
A council spokeswoman said discussions would take place with police on how to improve their response to future unplanned events.
