A DUNDEE councillor has described the city as being like a “war-torn nation” after youths hurled fireworks in the streets on Monday evening.
The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service said it was called to an incident on Beauly Square in the city’s Kirkton area at around 5.30pm.
Videos posted on social media show fires being lit on the adjacent Balgowan Avenue and police with riot shields attending.
'These are scenes that you’d expect in an action movie or war-torn nation'. Police were targeted with fireworks in a night of disorder in Dundee that saw roads set ablaze.https://t.co/r9qnMDT1Sp pic.twitter.com/yEUaqEAoGh
— STV News (@STVNews) November 1, 2022
Drivers were forced to turn back from the fires and a Police Scotland helicopter circled above the area.
Some reports said that cars had been damaged as bricks were thrown at them and that people could be seen jumping on vehicles.
One woman, whose car was hit with a brick, told local newspaper The Courier: "I was driving at the roundabout at Old Glamis near Balgowan Avenue when this started.
“Bricks, barriers and fireworks were being thrown at vehicles.
Police are dealing with ongoing incidents in the Kirkton area of Dundee. Videos show roads blocked by fires, cars being damaged, riot police, fireworks being launched towards vehicles. Pictures show smashed windows.@STVNews pic.twitter.com/OwJIhlBcun
— Brandon Cook (@brandoncookSTV) October 31, 2022
“The side of our car was damaged while we had our six-year-old daughter in the vehicle.
“Another car had its windscreen smashed nearby. We called 999 and they said they were aware of what was going on.”
Leader of Dundee City Council John Alexander said he was disgusted by the “reckless behaviour”.
He posted on Facebook: “This isn’t just a wee bonfire. Blocking roads with bins ablaze, smashing up cars and damaging our schools are scenes that you’d expect in an action movie or war-torn nation.
This is the shocking moment hooded yobs threw fireworks at riot police in Kirkton, Dundee, this evening. Our photographer was on scene after specialist officers and a helicopter were drafted in. We've got the latest here: https://t.co/1WQSFEBB5E pic.twitter.com/NY8hMumZEO
— Evening Telegraph (@Evening_Tele) October 31, 2022
“I’m shocked but more than that, I’m angry. This reckless behaviour endangers lives, with emergency vehicles unable to pass on Balgowan Avenue and it costs residents and every taxpayer money.”
Councillor Daniel Coleman said the conduct was “inexcusable”.
He said: “The perpetrators are extremely lucky that no one appears to have been hurt.
“With it having been Halloween, several children will have been out in the streets and this could have been a disaster.
“I hope that Police Scotland identify the culprits as quickly as possible and appropriate action is taken. What happened is simply not on. I will be contacting local police about my concerns.
“Public resources are already stretched to their absolute maximum without having to deal with this mindless behaviour.”
One officer was injured in the chaos and there has yet to be any confirmation of arrests in relation to the behaviour.
The Scottish Police Federation’s David Hamilton said the scenes were an “extreme expression” of fireworks disorder.
He told BBC Radio Scotland’s Good Morning Scotland programme: “My working assumption, at the moment, would be that this happens every year and that this is just an extreme expression of what happens every year.
“And it is unacceptable, it doesn’t excuse it, it is something that is a problem when people get hold of fireworks and decide to have a shot at police officers, in particular.”
Hamilton added: “It’s absolutely unbelievable when you see these kind of pictures.
“Even for someone like myself who has been involved in these type of scenes, it is always a shock.
“This all particularly highlights the need for the new legislation that has come in to try to get some kind of control over fireworks.
“That’s not fully in place yet, that will be next year before that licensing scheme comes in, but that will be one aspect of it.
“Because this is not a one-off, this is something that has been happening for many years, which has been a problem for policing.”
He said there had been “big problems” with similar disorder in Midlothian, Glasgow and Edinburgh in the past.
“This is actually fairly new for Dundee in terms of the scale of it and the severity of it.”
Chief Superintendent Phil Davison said: “Throwing fireworks and other items towards emergency services is reckless and dangerous. No one should go to work and expect to be attacked.
“One officer suffered a minor injury and damage was caused to a school and a number of vehicles.
“I would like to reassure the public of Dundee that we remain committed to keeping them safe as we understand last night’s behaviour must have been really distressing for residents in the areas.
“We have a range of highly-trained public order officers available to policing commanders across Scotland to enhance resources and deal with any issues that arise. Officers will be patrolling the local areas to provide public reassurance.”
He urged anyone with information on Monday night’s disorder to contact police.
Following last night's events, all three Asda stores across the city have said fireworks are being withdrawn from sale “with immediate effect”.
The Courier reports that Joe FitzPatrick – the MSP for Dundee City West – contacted Asda asking for fireworks sales to be halted.
A representative of Asda told FitzPatrick: “Following last night’s events, we’ve taken the decision to remove fireworks from sale from all three of our Dundee stores for the duration of this sales period.
“We will be contacting the stores to have them removed from sale.”
North east MSP Michael Marra also said Tesco confirmed to him that sales will be suspended at its stores across the city.
Speaking to The Courier, FitzPatrick said: "Clearly everyone will be keen to ensure that there is no repetition of such conduct over the coming days in Kirkton or elsewhere in the city in the lead up to fireworks night.
“This morning I reached out to Asda to ask whether they might consider withdrawing fireworks from sale given the circumstances.
“I’m pleased that Asda have agreed to remove fireworks from sale at all three of their stores in the city, including their Kirkton store.
“I appreciate that they were under no obligation to do so and I’m sure that this move will be welcomed across the city.”
He added that there was no suggestion the fireworks used in the attacks were bought from Asda.
City council leader John Alexander said on social media that he had been in touch with supermarkets.
(2/3) I've also been in contact with local supermarkets, as I eant to see the sale of fireworks suspended across Dundee. Some may claim that to be a knee jerk reaction but at this point, I think it a necessary measure to address genuine fear, alarm and concern.
— Councillor John Alexander (@CllrAlexander) November 1, 2022
He said: “I’ve also been in contact with local supermarkets as I want to see the sale of fireworks suspended across Dundee.
“Some may claim that to be a knee-jerk reaction but at this point, I think it a necessary measure to address genuine fear, alarm and concern.”
