On Sunday 18 October, mayhem occupied the premises of Thorpe Park, Chertsey, as several guests were attacked, possibly as a result of Surrey Police’s inability to deal with the rowdy crowds.
The many visitors who attended Thorpe Park a few days ago were grossly greeted by an overwhelming sense of disorder within the grounds. Otherwise known for its horrifying and spine-chilling nature, it became perhaps more difficult for both the police, and the park employees to distinguish between acting, and a genuine conveyance of anger and aggression.
It is believed that the park displayed an effort to reduce this behaviour, as officials claimed they asked several people to leave the premises due to “intimidating and threatening behaviour”.
Despite this, some guests still found their experiences to be extremely unpleasant and bitter as one, unnamed woman claimed Sunday to be “the most horrendous day”.
Besides traditionally insensitive behaviour, a disregard for the coronavirus pandemic was also shown by several guests, as failure to meet government guidance was not opposed by staff at Thorpe Park. “There were massive groups of people everywhere” she said while explaining the predicament.
In addition to this, it is believed that very few masks were used by the vast crowds, as groups of over twenty people casually loitered with their mouths uncovered.
The excessive use of physically imposing and abusive behaviour was also seemingly not picked up on by any of the staff, as the experiences of many guests were greatly restricted. One couple explained “we only went on three rides” as the apparent fear of carnage, and in some cases injury inspired them to hide in restaurants and cafes for the remainder of the day.
A number of acts of physical violence were reported as some of the park's sections had to be closed off due to the guests’ lack of control. “Actors were abused” claimed another witness as the true nature of the occasion was not grasped by some people.
In light of the carnage that occurred on the night, Thorpe Park have issued a statement saying “we take these sorts of incidents very seriously”. Unfortunately, this does not undo the disappointment that overcame so many people this weekend, or for that matter, the fear that came about for both visitors and actors at the scene.
