Danger alert on riverside drinking den
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UNDER-AGE drinkers in Moray are risking their lives by boozing close to a fast-flowing river.
Up to 50 youths – the vast majority under-18 – are meeting up regularly in a woodland area close to the River Spey in Fochabers.
The use of social media sites means teenagers from Elgin, Buckie, Keith and other areas are known to travel there at weekends.
Despite efforts by local police officers and youth workers, the area known as ‘The Pinnie’ continues to be used as a drinking den, mainly on a Friday night.
The area in question is the woodland between Fochabers Cricket Club and the Old Spey Bridge leading to Mosstodloch, used by walkers and dog walkers, and the mess of bottles and alcohol packaging left by the young people, some as young as 14, is nothing short of a disgrace, said local Police Constable Ian Moeller.
Picnic benches at the site have been damaged and badly burned.
Constable Moeller said the dangers of under-age drinking are magnified given the proximity to the fast-flowing river.
"All it would take is for one of them to get drunk and think it would be a laugh to throw their mate in the river," he said.
He wants parents to be aware of the dangers.
"Under-age drinking is not a problem that is unique to Fochabers but it is clear that this area has become an agreed meeting point for youths looking to engage in under-age drinking," said Constable Moeller.
"There are two shops within Fochabers which sell alcohol and both strictly enforce the age restrictions on selling alcohol," added Constable Moeller, "so it goes without saying that these youths are either having the alcohol bought for them or sourcing it from elsewhere.
In an effort to provide the youngsters with more activities at the weekend, Lennox Community Council recently secured funding from the Big Lottery Fund’s Communities Awards which, along with cash from the local authority’s sports development section and the Moray Alcohol and Drugs Partnership, will go towards running Midnight Football sessions at Milne’s High School every Friday between 8pm and 10pm.
Colin Murray, community council chairman, urged parents to support the efforts of the police to keep their children safe.
"Parents have a duty of care, not only to their children but to the community," he said.
The woodland area is owned by the Crown Estate, which is supporting the police and community efforts to tackle the problem.
