SPECTATORS have been left furious following a chaotic night at a huge firework display. 

Hundreds of people flocked to Mayflower Park to watch the Southampton Fireworks Festival event. 

But many were left disappointed as they were unable to even get through the main gates on Saturday night.

Attendees have said that they saw "people getting crushed and children crying" as crowds rushed to watch the display.

Southampton Fireworks Festival has now limited who can comment on its Facebook posts.

Daily Echo:

City resident Ross Moncaster attended the event with his partner and friend.

He said they have visited the display almost every year, but described ity as "akin to Woodstock '99".

He said: "We got there quite early at around 6.10pm as we thought this would be enough time to get in.

"As we were walking down we could see loads of people queuing on the pavement near Red Funnel [off Town Quay] which is where the entrance normally is.

"But we realised that they have moved the entrance to near the Holiday Inn.

"We were stood in the queue until about 6.50pm and they just suddenly opened the gates and everyone was rushing to get in.

"When you got in there, it was thick with mud and overcrowded.

"The problem is that not everyone was able to get through and there were lots of angry people.

"Next year, people just won't bother to pay for the tickets."

He said that once the fireworks started, the smoke that built up from the display "completely covered" the big finale.

Another resident, Dean Rofe, paid £28 for tickets to get into the event and described the evening as a "complete farce".

He said he joined the queue at 6pm and claimed it didn't move for an hour.

"Then at 7pm once the fireworks started they just decided to open the gates," he said.

"No bag checks, no ticket checks, people were getting crushed and lots of children were crying.

"They [the company] have had to disable their Facebook comments due to the huge number of complaints.

"I have a video showing my view of the fireworks over the fence and blocked by an Aldi lorry at 7.10pm despite paying £28 for tickets to get in.

"An utter shambles and there were hundreds of people in the same position as me."

The Daily Echo has attempted to contact the Southampton Fireworks Festival for comment and is awaiting a response.

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