Residents concerned as police break up 'around 100 people' involved in Leicester 'water fight'

Residents have been left concerned after police officers were forced to disperse a crowd of “around 100 people” involved in 'water fights' on a Leicester city centre residential street. Footage from Bath Lane, near the Holiday Inn, shows groups of people throwing water at each other.

Officers from Leicestershire Police can be seen and heard ordering the groups through a megaphone to disperse. A spokesperson for the force said a dispersal order was put in place at 8.45pm last night (Sunday May 12), after people were asked to leave the scene but then returned. Dispersal orders give the police the power to ask people to leave an area to reduce the risk of public disorder, and to not return for a set amount of time.

The force said it had received reports that the group was causing “obstructions” in the road. A nearby resident told LeicestershireLive that “no one could get down the street”, which features numerous blocks of accommodation and is densely populated, and that “lately this sort of thing happens a lot” in the street.

READ MORE: Why diggers were on Victoria Park in Leicester this morning

The resident, who did not want to be named, said: “When we left to go for a walk down the canal, they were chasing each other in cars, four people in each car, possibly five to six cars involved, all with water guns and water balloons, racing each other. And the people not in cars were running across the roads jumping out of the cars way as they'd race down.

“No one could get through the street that needed to. The drains and gutters are filled with plastic water bottles. They'd all have really loud music as well.

“I saw a lady with two children, holding bags, who had to be escorted through the street by a police officer. You would think it's nice to enjoy the hot weather with a water fight and it's harmless fun, but blocking an entire road and racing cars around each other, then leaving the road in a sea of plastic, is just the worst for everyone living here."

Much of the accommodation in the street is understood to be student housing. The onlooker said: “I don't want to pin it all on the uni students, but it's completely obvious they are refilling from the flats and constantly going in and out. I love living this close to the centre and the streets are usually not too bad, but lately this sort of thing happens a lot.

"The point is to raise awareness. This street had a firework fight in November, then this same scene with the water happened on Wednesday (May 8) and, again, the drains and gutters are filled with plastic water bottles."

It is not known whether any of the people taking part in the apparent water fight were students. De Montfort University and the University of Leicester declined to comment when approached by LeicestershireLive.

A spokesperson for Leicestershire Police said: “At around 6.45pm yesterday (Sunday 12 May) police were called to Bath Lane following a report around 100 people had gathered, causing obstructions to the road. The group initially dispersed when officers arrived but later returned.

"As a result, a dispersal order was granted at 8.45pm. The order ceased at 6.45am today (Monday). Officers from the Central Leicester Neighbourhood Policing Area (NPA) are liaising with partners regarding the incident.”

We are now bringing you the latest updates on WhatsApp first