Travellers launch Bank Holiday ‘land grab’ on wildlife haven as diggers & trucks rip up field sparking fury from locals

A WILDLIFE haven has been ravaged as part of a suspected Bank Holiday land grab by travellers – sparking fury from residents. Diggers and trucks reportedly started tearing away at the field in the leafy town of Sawbridgeworth, Hertfordshire, on Friday evening. The wildlife haven has been ravaged as part of a suspected Bank Holiday land grab Credit: Facebook Heavy machinery churned up the grass and fences were erectedCredit: Refer to source But the works – explicitly timed to ensure the local authority was closed for the extended weekend – were met with anger in the local area. Hundreds of furious locals quickly blocked the entrance to the site on Sheering Mill Lane and slammed the “illegal” land occupation. Sign up for The Sun newsletter Thank you! Heavy machinery churned up the grass and fences were erected as travellers appeared to lay the ground for caravans and mobile homes. Lorries delivering rubble and building materials continued to pile into the site hours after East Hertfordshire District Council shut for the weekend. Hundreds of furious locals quickly blocked the entrance to the site Credit: Mayor of Sawbridgeworth/Facebook Unauthorised works continued throughout the day, according to Cllr Angus Parsad-Wyatt Credit: Facebook But despite the “frustrating” tactic, the local authority served a temporary stop notice at around 10.45am on Saturday. However, the legal tool was “ignored” and unauthorised works continued throughout the day, according to Cllr Angus Parsad-Wyatt. Mr Parsad-Wyatt, who is the mayor of Sawbridgeworth, described it as a “flagrant, deliberate breach of the rules”. He said: “Seeing this floodplain wildlife habitat get torn up in front of us is gut-wrenching. Most read in The Sun “We’ve had councillors, police, and the Environment Agency working all weekend, throwing everything we legally can at this to try to halt it. “But under the law, this is treated as a civil matter rather than a criminal offence, so the police have no power to stop it. “If the law lets this happen and leaves everyone powerless to act, the law is broken. Something has to change.” It is believed as many as 400 locals piled onto the road as part of a peaceful protest which then continued into the night. One fuming local said: “All part of the plan to run roughshod over the rules that we have to follow but two tier for them! “This is typical all over the country.” Harlow Fencing, which admitted providing materials, confirmed deliveries to the site had stopped after concerns were initially raised. In a statement, it said: “We were led to believe the site was a legitimate new-build development and supplied materials in good faith. “As soon as concerns were brought to our attention, we stopped all further deliveries. “Harlow Fencing had no involvement in carrying out any works at the site.” The council applied for a High Court injunction on Saturday, which was secured and served on site at 10.30pm. It means further development on the land is banned, as well as moving mobile homes onto the site. A hearing has since been scheduled for September 15. Hertfordshire Police are also aware of the illegal development, which is becoming a familiar sight across the country. Fed-up locals in Felsted, Essex, accused travellers of tearing up a beauty spot with bulldozers in a “military operation” overnight in May. Villagers say they are “sick of it” after a convoy of 30 vehicles, including bulldozers and trucks, arrived at the start of the Bank Holiday weekend. And dozens of caravans, diggers and machinery rolled onto privately owned land near Flamstead, Hertfordshire, over the Easter weekend. Travellers laid down concrete across the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) – located just minutes from Luton Airport. 1 comment1