Festival No.6: Founder apologises for parking 'ordeal'

The founder of Festival No.6 in Gwynedd has apologised for the "ordeal" festival-goers faced after hundreds of cars became stuck in a flooded car park following heavy rain.

About 200 people had to take refuge at a Porthmadog leisure centre when they were stranded overnight at the festival's end in early September.

Organiser Gareth Cooper said they were "truly sorry" for the "awful" ordeal.

However he said they had had no way of knowing what would happen in advance.

In a statement, Mr Cooper said: "The weather we experienced this year at Festival No6 was extreme to say the least and it was certainly our most challenging festival to date.

"The consequent ordeal faced by people at the park and ride was awful and for that we are truly sorry.

"However, despite the rumours and unfounded accusations flying around, we had no way of knowing this would happen and had no warning to that effect until the flood was literally in progress.

"Why would we knowingly risk people's property and our reputation? It simply makes no sense."

He also apologised for a perceived lack of personal contact with complainants seeking compensation.

"Large scale claims like this can take a while to resolve - we have worked around the clock to push this through at no small cost to ourselves and hopefully we have reached a conclusion in record time that will satisfy everyone affected," he added.

Mr Cooper confirmed the festival remained committed to holding the festival in the region, and thanked local people who came to the aid of stranded festival-goers.

The festival, named after a character in the cult series The Prisoner which was filmed at Portmeirion, is in its fifth year.