Boardmasters cancelled hours before gates open over storm fears
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Boardmasters/Alex Rawson
The Boardmasters festival has been cancelled amid severe storm forecasts - hours before gates were due to open.
The event headlined by the Wu-Tang Clan, Florence + The Machine and Foals, was to take place in Newquay, Cornwall.
Organisers said on Tuesday night they were cancelling ahead of strong winds forecasted for Cornwall on Friday and Saturday and after speaking to police.
Although the music acts were not due to start until Friday, the festival's gates were due to open on Wednesday.
The Met Office has issued a yellow weather warning for heavy rain and thunderstorms for much of England and Wales on Friday and Saturday and said Cornwall faced strong winds.
A statement from Boardmasters organisers, posted at about 23:10 BST on Tuesday, said: "The safety of you, the fans and attendees, as well as performers and crew comes first, and the potential risk is too severe for the event to go ahead at this time."
Refund information will be shared "as soon as possible", they added.
Ticket prices ranged from £69 for day-entry passes through to VIP packages for five days of camping from about £370 per person.
The three-day event attended by 55,000 people last year was being held at Watergate Bay and festivalgoers had been already making their way to Newquay.
Hannah O'Brien and Charlotte-Louise Summers, from Bromley, Kent, arrived at Newquay on Wednesday morning, having spent more than £500 each on tickets, camping gear and food.
They said they understood the decision, but wished organisers "gave more notice".
They said: "I don't think less than 24 hours is reasonable and we still don't have information on refunds."
Kristina Powell said she had not been able to sleep for shock after learning that the festival was cancelled after travelling from Cheshire.
She said her and her friends "at first ... couldn't and didn't want to believe it and honestly thought it was a hoax".
"It all seemed a bit unprofessional - a screenshot of a statement written on a Notes app?
"The website was down, which added to our doubt. Then, when it did come back up, tickets were still available to buy."
She said tickets were still available on the website until 01:30, despite the festival being cancelled hours earlier.
The five-day surfing side of event, due to start at nearby Fistral beach later, is due to go ahead, the BBC's Fiona Lamdin said.
Bus company Megabus said on Twitter it would be making extra seats available on its Newquay to London service for passengers affected by the cancellation.
Rail operator GWR tweeted that those with return tickets from Newquay between now and Monday "can use their returns today from 09:30".
Responding to one customer, it added that those with "refundable tickets can get refunds if they don't travel, we are still discussing options for the non-refundable Advance fares and will share more once known".
Acts due to take part have given their reaction, with Foals reposting Boardmasters' cancellation notice on Facebook and adding the single word: "Gutted".
BBC forecaster Paul Goddard said the "main issue is the wind", with most of it likely in Cornwall.
He said that while the weather warning currently predicted high winds on Saturday, his weather maps were showing they were likely to hit on Friday night.
He added that there could be average wind speeds of about 40mph, and gusts of between 55 and 60mph.
Malcolm Bell, Visit Cornwall chief executive, insisted that despite the festival cancellation the county was "still open for business".
Boardmasters, a live music and surfing festival, usually takes place every year in and around Newquay.
The latest stories from Cornwall and on the Boardmasters cancellation
It can trace its heritage back to 1981.
Other acts who had been set to perform at the festival site in Watergate Bay included Razorlight, Dizzee Rascal and Jorja Smith.
Have you been affected by the festival's cancellation? Email haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk
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