Two organisers of a mass snowball fight that saw hundreds of students gather in a park have been fined £10,000 each for breaching England’s lockdown rules.
Crowds gathered in Hyde Park, Leeds for more than two hours following heavy snow on January 14, despite Covid-19 guidance asking Britons to stay at home in a bid to control the virus.
Under current Government regulations, a gathering of more than 30 people is illegal in England and carries a maximum fine of £10,000.
Two men, aged 20 and 23, were questioned yesterday and slapped with the heavy fines after being investigated by police probing the illicit gathering.
The 23-year-old had previously been fined for breaching restrictions at an address near the park in Leeds, West Yorkshire, in November, West Yorkshire Police said.
Crowds gathered in Hyde Park, Leeds (pictured) for more than two hours following heavy snow on January 14, despite Covid-19 guidance asking Britons to stay at home in a bid to control the virus
Chief Superintendent Damien Miller added: ‘We take absolutely no pleasure in handing out such heavy fines to these two young men but their actions encouraged hundreds of people to be in close proximity to each other, creating a significant and completely unnecessary risk of increasing the spread of the virus.
‘It was a blatant breach of the legislation that is in place to help keep people safe at what remains a critical time for us all.’
Shocking footage of the snowball fight – organised on Facebook – was shared online earlier this month and met with widespread criticism.
Onlookers said they were horrified by the mass breach, which took place less than a mile from where coronavirus patients are treated at Leeds General Infirmary.
Two men, aged 20 and 23, were questioned yesterday and slapped with the heavy fines after being investigated by police probing the illicit gathering. Pictured: The snowball fight
The 23-year-old had previously been fined for breaching restrictions at an address near the park in Leeds, West Yorkshire, in November, West Yorkshire Police said. Pictured: The gathering
Chief Superintendent Miller added: ‘The event attracted understandable media attention and widespread public condemnation of all those who irresponsibly took part.
‘That said, it remains clear that the vast majority of people recognise the need for collective responsibility and are continuing to stick with the regulations that are there to protect our families and our communities.
‘We will continue our approach of engaging, explaining and encouraging compliance but we won’t hesitate to enforce the law where people blatantly disregard the rules and put others at risk.’
Liam Ford, who lives nearby, shot a brief video of the snowball fight after coming across the commotion while on a walk with his girlfriend.
The furloughed retail worker said at the time: ‘With what’s going on, I can’t condone mass gatherings like that.
‘I’ve really come to appreciate going for a walk and having that time, I think these people have abused that.
‘We were going for a walk in the park, it’s literally around the corner from our house, and we heard all this commotion.
‘I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. There were two groups of around 100 people each side, stood apart, charging at each other and throwing snowballs.
Shocking footage of the snowball fight – organised on Facebook – was shared online and met with widespread criticism from social media users earlier this month
‘I was stood there for a good ten minutes and there times when it quietened down and then picked back up again.
‘It just shows a blatant disregard for the NHS and the strain it is under.’
However, one student defended the gathering, saying it was ‘a laugh people needed’.
Adam, a 20-year-old student who did not wish to give his second name, said students from various universities were involved and non-students also took part.
‘I think a lot of people were just in the park anyway enjoying the snow and joined in,’ he said.
‘It was a very welcome relief… a welcome laugh that people needed.
‘I know many students who are extremely depressed, and stressed with online exams and have had little support.
‘Mental health is equally as important as physical health… so many young people and students really have nothing to keep them going at this point.’
He added that he understood complaints about the gathering, but felt the risks of transmitting coronavirus had been low.
Lockdown rules in England say people can only leave home for a limited number of reasons, including exercise – but only with the same household, support bubble or one other person at a two-metre distance.