ANGRY residents have hit out at day-trippers who are dumping their waste and litter at Southend’s beaches.

During this heatwave sunseekers have been flocking to the beaches at Southend to enjoy the weather. Yet some visitors have left piles of litter behind - seemingly without a care.

The mounds of rubbish have been left along the sea walls in Southend and Westcliff.

Residents in Southend said the bins have not been overflowing either, and that it was simply an issue of people just lazily leaving their litter behind.

Patricia Couston, 51, from Shoebury, said there is no excuse for people not to bin their rubbish.

She said: “I think that it’s just awful, it’s down to people having the wrong attitude.

“I think also that people do not confront others who are dropping rubbish and it might be that this is out of concern that those dropping the litter could be unpleasant to them.”

Clifford Leech, 65, from Southend, added: “The council should employ a beach warden and give them powers to hand out on the spot fines of £100 to act as a deterrent against dropping litter but the council does do a good job with the beaches.”

Carl Robinson, director of public protection for Southend Council, said: “We take great pride in the quality of our beaches and local parks, and have blue and green flags and seaside awards across the borough, which are a central pillar of our town’s visitor offer.

“With 200 bins along the seafront plus a further 50 temporary beach bins that are used on our busy days, there really is no excuse for leaving litter on the beach, seawall or nearby areas.

“We would urge visitors to use these bins or take their rubbish home with them afterwards and also remind them that anyone seen dropping litter could be issued with a fixed penalty notice of £80.

“We also do our bit, and our waste contractor, Veolia, is increasing its staffing levels over the weekend to deal swiftly with any litter and to empty full bins.

“The beach-raker will be out in the mornings, and littering crews will hand-pick any litter left.”