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| Stonehenge crowds cause gridlock | |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Thousands of people have flocked to Stonehenge in Wiltshire to celebrate the Summer Solstice, causing roads in the area to become gridlocked. | |
| English Heritage, which manages the ancient monument, said the car parks were full hours before sunrise. | |
| Crowds who made it through the traffic saw Druid ceremonies at the stones as the sun rose on the longest day. | |
| Earlier, Wiltshire Police said they expected numbers for the event to exceed last year's figure of 30,000. | |
| The event to mark the dawn of the longest day in the Northern Hemisphere has grown in popularity since a four-mile exclusion zone around the site was lifted nine years ago. | The event to mark the dawn of the longest day in the Northern Hemisphere has grown in popularity since a four-mile exclusion zone around the site was lifted nine years ago. |
| Police for the most part are wishing people a happy Solstice and so are the security guards Druid King Arthur Pendragon | Police for the most part are wishing people a happy Solstice and so are the security guards Druid King Arthur Pendragon |
| Police drafted in extra officers and warned warmer weather and the fact that the event falls on a weekend would increase numbers further. | |
| They also said there would be a zero tolerance approach to drugs and drunkenness, with an alcohol limit of four cans of beer or a bottle of wine per person imposed by English Heritage. | |
| Druid King Arthur Pendragon told the BBC shortly before sunrise: "It's a very nice atmosphere and everything's fine at the moment. | |
| "There have been more police present this year, more security, but everything's passed off very jovially and everyone's in a good mood. | "There have been more police present this year, more security, but everything's passed off very jovially and everyone's in a good mood. |
| "And the police for the most part are wishing people a happy Solstice and so are the security guards." | "And the police for the most part are wishing people a happy Solstice and so are the security guards." |
| English Heritage issued an advisory note to visitors which warned: "The police will be on site during the access period and will take immediate action against anyone flouting the law. | English Heritage issued an advisory note to visitors which warned: "The police will be on site during the access period and will take immediate action against anyone flouting the law. |
| "Summer Solstice is not a good time to experiment with drugs - the crowd, the noise and the sheer size of the place are likely to make any bad reaction much, much worse." | "Summer Solstice is not a good time to experiment with drugs - the crowd, the noise and the sheer size of the place are likely to make any bad reaction much, much worse." |
| Meanwhile, a limit of 200 tents was set at a field near the Avebury Ring after residents complained about the number of visitors to that site in 2008. | |
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