500 sleeping bags salvaged at Electric Picnic

A Laois charity has recovered hundreds of abandoned sleeping bags from the Electric Picnic festival site to redistribute among homeless people.

Portlaoise Action to Homelessness (PATH) say festival-goers also left tents, camping equipment and clothes at the Stradbally site.

Around 75,000 people attended the festival's 20th anniversary.

Charities have been issued salvaging permits to assist with the clean-up operation.

Hundreds of tents, sleeping bags and other abandoned items were recovered from the site

PATH volunteer Maria McCormic told BBC News NI that poor weather meant the charity's 20 volunteers were unable to spend as long onsite as they would have liked.

“The salvage was almost cancelled due to weather and high winds,” she said.

She said the fields were now "basically clear" and it was a "very significant operation".

“We will take them and distribute them to the homeless in Dublin over the next two months.

About 20 people from PATH volunteered to help gather abandoned equipment

'Doing everything we can'

Videos circulated on social media platforms appear to show the camp grounds littered with large amounts of material waste.

Music festivals have been grappling with the issue of abandoned camping equipment for years, and one charity has suggested festivals should impose a deposit for campers which is returned only if they take their tent home.

Electric Picnic said it has placed a heavy focus on sustainability this year.

"We are doing everything we can to minimise the impact on the only planet we have got," managing director Melvin Benn said in a statement ahead of the event.

Hundreds of abandoned sleeping bags were transported from camping grounds to be washed.