Coronavirus: South Belfast house party leads to 40 Covid fines

The parties took place in a terraced house in Penrose Street, Belfast

Forty people have been fined for breaching coronavirus restrictions after police broke up two parties at the same house twice in one night.

Police said officers were called to a "large, noisy house party" at the property in Penrose Street in Belfast just before 12:40 GMT on Wednesday.

They found 19 people who had "locked themselves in a bedroom and initially refused to come out".

Officers also discovered a further two people "hiding in the attic".

At that point, police issued 32 fines for breaching Covid restrictions and four people received warnings for breaching the rules.

Two people also received fixed penalty notices for obstructing police.

Penrose Street is in the Holyland area of south Belfast which has a large student population.

PSNI Sgt Stuart Jackson said police officers "remained at the scene until people left the area".

'Not a game'

However, just after 08:15 GMT on Wednesday, police said they received "a further complaint that a party had restarted at the same address".

Officers returned to the scene and issued a further eight fines for breaching Covid restrictions.

"People must understand that the current health restrictions are not a game," said Sgt Jackson.

"Across Northern Ireland, people are making sacrifices, not visiting family members or friends and businesses have temporarily closed.

"The young people congregating or travelling to this area really need to consider their actions for their own health and that of the community of this residential area."

The Holyland area of Belfast has been the scene of several student house parties since the beginning of the academic term in September.

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House parties have caused tension between long-term residents and the area's student population for some years, but the tension has been heightened this year due to the pandemic.

Since mid-September, people from different households have not been allowed to mix indoors in private homes in Belfast, with a few exceptions to the rule.

The restrictions on socialising were extended across all of Northern Ireland later that month and remain in force.

It is not yet clear if any of the people who attended the Penrose Street parties were students.

Sgt Jackson said police will now contact university and further education authorities "who may consider taking action if any of their students were involved with this party".