VIDEO - Police chief defends dodgem-riding officers

A police chief has defended his officers after they were photographed riding on fairground dodgems.
By The Newsroom
Published 17th Oct 2017, 18:31 BST
Updated 12th Dec 2017, 12:30 BST
Pictures of Humberside Police officers on the ride have been published in The Sun newspaper and received criticism from some members of the public on social media.Pictures of Humberside Police officers on the ride have been published in The Sun newspaper and received criticism from some members of the public on social media.
Pictures of Humberside Police officers on the ride have been published in The Sun newspaper and received criticism from some members of the public on social media.

Pictures of Humberside Police officers on the ride at Hull Fair have been published in The Sun newspaper and received criticism from some members of the public on social media.

But Deputy Chief Constable Andy McDyer said the officers were taking a break on the last day of the annual fair, which saw just four arrests during the eight-day event.

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Mr McDyer said: "On the final day of the 2017 Hull Fair, our officers, who were policing the event, took a five-minute break to have some fun and engage with the fairground organisers by taking to the dodgems.

Pictures of Humberside Police officers on the ride have been published in The Sun newspaper and received criticism from some members of the public on social media.Pictures of Humberside Police officers on the ride have been published in The Sun newspaper and received criticism from some members of the public on social media.
Pictures of Humberside Police officers on the ride have been published in The Sun newspaper and received criticism from some members of the public on social media.

"Our officers, PCSOs and volunteer special constables worked long, hard hours during the event, some working nine consecutive 10-hour shifts, and they were able to enjoy a ride before the fair leaves Hull for another year.

"Throughout the week-long event, where Hull hosts one of the largest travelling fairs in Europe, we have received overwhelming positive feedback from both visitors to the fair and those following us on social media."

He continued: "We helped create a family-friendly and safe environment for all those attending and this is borne out by the fact that, of the half a million people that attended this year's event, there were only four arrests.

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"I am incredibly proud of our teams that worked hard to engage with members of the public and ensure that the fair was safe for the people that attended."

Pictures of Humberside Police officers on the ride have been published in The Sun newspaper and received criticism from some members of the public on social media.Pictures of Humberside Police officers on the ride have been published in The Sun newspaper and received criticism from some members of the public on social media.
Pictures of Humberside Police officers on the ride have been published in The Sun newspaper and received criticism from some members of the public on social media.

Chief Superintendent Darren Downs posted a picture of himself on the ride on Twitter, with the caption: "Apparently I look too competitive, but I might as well have put a target on my back. Fantastic afternoon at the fair."

Inspector Scott Snowden also tweeted a photograph and wrote: "Great fun!"

The tweets received a mixture of responses from the public.

In reply to Mr Downs, a Twitter user named Thunder Road wrote: "Please don't ever complain again of shortage of police."

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Lord Ealing said: "I wish that amount of police could be deployed to my area to combat the now crime that won't be investigated!!"

But others voiced their support.

Matt tweeted: "You all do an amazing job under great pressure and need some stress relief."

And Debbie wrote: "You guys deserve two minutes of fun at a quiet time like anyone else. Why not? Keep up the good work."

Related topics:Humberside PoliceHullTwitterEurope