An Edinburgh couple have spoken of their disappointment towards the Edinburgh Hogmanay Party after they were forced to leave after just five minutes at the event.
Jason Gaffney, 52, and his wife Vecheka Song, 31, had bought tickets for the celebration and arrived at the event at 10pm.
They said that by the time they managed to get to Frederick Street they started to feel claustrophobic as they found it impossible to move.
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They say that it was so overcrowded that they were unable to access any food or drink and the situation left them with no choice but to leave after five minutes of watching the fireworks.
Jason says that he complained to both stewards and the police but neither were able to do anything about the situation.
He said the event was a “total rip off” and that he would warn others from attending the event in the future.
He said: “It is a total rip off at Hogmanay. I highly recommend that no one bothers with the event in future.
“We got in the queue at about 10:00pm for Frederick Street and the video that I sent was at 11pm just after we got to the bottom of Frederick Street.
“We left after five minutes as there was nowhere to go. My wife is only five foot two so she found it impossible.
“It was clearly overcrowded. You were supposed to be able to get a drink and some food as well as have a dance but I couldn't see where I was supposed to do any of those things.
“I mentioned to police at the bottom of Frederick Street and at the top of Frederick Street. They just kept repeating that they were there to prevent breaches of the peace and to complain to the organisers.
“I also complained to the stewards and they said they agreed but could do nothing.”
Jason added that there was not any physical inspection of tickets and it seemed as though people were just getting in through entrances without being stopped which caused the overcrowding.
The osteopath continued: “Many people entered at Frederick Street but there was no scanning of QR codes and just a visual check, so it was no surprise that it was massively overcrowded.
“Stewards and the police didn't care. Many people entered and instantly left.
“I complained to the stewards and they agreed it was a mess.”
Directors of UniqueAssembly, who produce Edinburgh’s Hogmanay on behalf of Edinburgh City Council, said “The Edinburgh’s Hogmanay Street Party is unlike other festival events due to a large festival size crowd being located within city centre streets rather than an open green field space.
"This brings with it particular challenges and during the event UniqueAssembly work in conjunction with the Edinburgh City Council and Police Scotland as well as specialist event stewards, event safety officers and other blue light services to ensure crowd safety is never compromised.
"We were monitoring the whole Street Party arena all evening. As soon as it became apparent that bottom of Frederick Street, which is a prime viewing spot, was getting very busy we closed that gate and opened another entrance in a quieter area.
"The Frederick Street bar was also temporarily closed to encourage movement away from the area and to steer revellers to the five other bars on the Street. Safety lanes are located on either side of the streets throughout the arena, which can be opened to alleviate crowd pressure when required and lanes were opened in this area to allow audience members safe access out of the busy areas and into sections on either side of Frederick Street which had lower audience numbers in them.
"The barrier lane system is in place for this very reason and sections throughout the Street Party can be opened or closed as required to increase crowd movement either naturally by crowd dynamics or deliberately by event stewards.
"The measures put in place did work and congestions levels eased. However, we are aware that this situation may have been uncomfortable and upsetting for some of those caught up in the crowd at this time and we apologise for any distress felt as a result of this.
"Overall our feedback is showing that despite the challenging weather conditions, the vast majority of the 40,000 revellers in the Street Party and Concert in the Gardens enjoyed their night dancing to live DJ sets relayed on big screens along the length of West Princes Street (as advertised), watching fireworks lift from Edinburgh Castle at 9.00pm, 10.00pm and 11.00om before cheering in the New Year to a spectacular 10 minute Midnight Moment with Fireworks from Edinburgh Castle and a rousing rendition of Auld Lang Syne."
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