Huge numbers of people piled onto the Blackpool seafront over the weekend, ignoring police appeals to stay away in an attempt to “keep the town safe”.
Sunny skies and warmer weather lured thousands to the coastal town on Saturday and Sunday – with photos appearing to show a jam-packed seafront and beach.
According to reports, there was little evidence of social distancing being enforced and few people wearing masks, with one eyewitness claiming she had “never seen it that busy before”.
Blackpool is one of the few areas in Lancashire to avoid tighter restrictions so far.
Police had already expressed concern that people would visit the town ahead of measures being implemented in their own areas this week.
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On Friday, Lancashire Police deputy chief constable Terry Woods had plead with people to avoid having one “last blast” ahead of impending restrictions in neighbouring regions (which come into effect on Tuesday 22 September).
Lancashire’s restrictions will prohibit households from mixing in homes and gardens, with hospitality limited to table service,
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Many venues will also be required to close between 10pm to 5am.
The rules apply to the boroughs of Preston, Lancaster, Wyre, Fylde, Chorley, South Ribble, West Lancashire, Ribble Valley, Blackburn with Darwen, Burnley, Pendle, Hyndburn, and Rossendale.
Gem Concannon from Northwich spoke to the BBC after visiting Blackpool on Saturday and said the town was “heaving”.
“…hardly anyone was wearing masks or social distancing,” she told the media outlet.
Dr Sakthi Karunanithi, the director of public health for Lancashire county council, has urged others to avoid the area and “look after each other”.
“Just because Blackpool is not yet an area of intervention, or where these new rules apply, this guidance that has come out applies to all of Lancashire no matter who you are or where you live so you take it with you wherever you go.”
News
Police appeal to find next of kin after man found outside Palace Theatre
Daisy Jackson
Police are trying to track down the family of a man who died after being found unresponsive outside the Palace Theatre in Manchester.
The man, who has now been named as Jonathan Bernard Carroll, was seen outside the city centre theatre at around 6.30am on Tuesday 12 November.
Emergency services rushed to the scene and Mr Carroll was taken to hospital.
Tragically, the 47-year-old passed away a short time later.
A large cordon was in place on Whitworth Street and Oxford Road while police and security attended the incident.
Greater Manchester Police are now appealing to find his next of kin.
It’s believed that he resided in the Salford area of Greater Manchester.
Anyone with any information should contact the Coroner’s Office on 0161 856 1376.
Greater Manchester public urged to help get people ‘off the streets and on their feet’ before Christmas
Emily Sergeant
Locals are being urged to help get hundreds of people “off the streets and back on their feet” this festive season.
As the temperatures told colder by the day, and Christmas creeps closer and closer, Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity is bringing back ‘1000 Beds for Christmas’, and the massively-important initiative is aiming to provide 1,000 nights of accommodation to people at risk of homelessness before the big day arrives.
Forming part of the ongoing ‘A Bed Every Night’ scheme, this festive fundraising mission is designed to provide food, shelter, warmth, and dedicated vital wrap-around support for those who need it most.
The charity says it wants to build on the “incredible success of 2023”, which raised more than £55,000 and provided 1,800 nights of accommodation.
Stockport-based property finance specialists, Together – which has supported the campaign for the last two years – has, once again, generously pledged to match every public donation for the first £20,000 raised.
Unfamiliar with the ‘A Bed Every Night’ scheme? Since 2017, when rough sleeping peaked, the initiative has helped ensure a significantly-higher rate of reduction in the numbers of people facing a night on streets in Greater Manchester than seen nationally.
The landmark scheme has given people the chance to rebuild their lives, while also giving them access to key services and opportunities that allows them to stay off the streets for good.
Despite the scheme’s recent success, organisations across Greater Manchester are under “a huge amount of pressure” to meet the demand for their services this winter, and given the current economic outlook, household budgets will continue to be squeezed – leaving people on the sharp end of inequality and poverty.
The Manc -
21st September 2020 
