Travellers accused of trashing hospital car park and ‘abusing’ NHS workers while ‘taking up 90 spaces’ in havoc stay

TRAVELLERS have been accused of trashing a hospital car park and “abusing” NHS workers while “taking up 90 spaces” in a havoc stay.

The group of about 50 people “intimidated” staff at Hammersmith Hospital in west London, where they drove “dangerously and at speed” in the hospital car park.

Tom Witherow/The Times

A caravan was dumped in the hospital car park[/caption]

An NHS consultant at the hospital told The Times: “They set up in our staff car park and made this section unusable.

“It was chaos for staff trying to park. They vandalised some cars, verbally abused staff and left rubbish everywhere.

“It was very intimidating for staff and it was all happening adjacent to the patient car park.”

Another said: “They’re bloody lawless. They keyed staff cars and started tearing up and down the car park. 

“They make a mess that costs us to clean it up and takes up space that should be used by staff, so it’s an inconvenience to people coming in to work.

“They were starting to tear up and down here in cars, which is obviously dangerous.”

Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, which runs the hospital, reportedly faces a clean-up bill running to thousands of pounds.

Hammersmith and Fulham Council removed the travellers on Thursday after CCTV cameras allegedly picked up vandalism, theft, intimidation of NHS workers and “serious disorder”.

The travellers allegedly took up 90 spaces in the hospital car park – where both patients and staff risk a fine if they don’t pay – with caravans, RVS and 4x4s.

This was the fourth time the hospital car park has been used by traveller groups, with the council now planning to put up height restrictions to keep out caravans.

The group were reportedly attending a wedding, with one traveller saying that they had wanted to stay longer.

Andrew Murray, the NHS trust’s head of facilities, said: “We apologise to any staff and patients who were impacted by this and are working with the local authority to try prevent a similar situation happening in the future.”