‘Carnival left my road stinking of wee with ladies’s underwear in every single place’

A woman is “disgusted” at what she found outside her home following Notting Hill Carnival.

The annual August Bank Holiday celebration of Caribbean culture takes to the streets of west London with music, parades and a whole lot of partying. But for Olivia, it’s what’s left behind which has become a real issue as a local resident.

“I have come back from a weekend away to avoid Notting Hill Carnival and come back to carnage,” the 27-year-old fumed after discovering women’s underwear, human waste and rubbish outside her home.

READ MORE:Notting Hill Carnival clean-up as millions of revellers descend on small London district

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The Carnival is one of the busiest weekends for emergency services in London, attracting on average one million people each year. Yesterday, the Metropolitan Police revealed that they made at least 230 arrests for various offences, including five stabbings.

Olivia, who declined to give her surname went away over the August Bank Holiday weekend specifically to avoid the street festivities said: “It is so awful. I have lived here for two years now so this is my second carnival. The first time was bad, but this is just awful. There is urine everywhere. It stinks, the whole street stinks. There is human poo right next to our bedroom window.

“It is awful to back to this in your own personal space. I just feel really vulnerable and disgusted that people have come and done that. It just makes you feel really upset. This is my home. It is such a lovely area most of the time, but it really does make you feel quite unsafe. The neighbours have got two young children, and this is hazardous waste.”

Photos of the aftermath show broken bottles, discarded bras and food packets covering the streets.

Olivia said that she couldn’t afford to board up her property like many do and wishes the local council – the Royal Borough of

Kensington and Chelsea council (RBKC) – would offer more support for people like her. She added: “We couldn’t afford to board up our property. It was a huge quote of £600.

“Luckily, we have got bars on our windows. There are cars with dents in them, so you need to move your car. If you have anything that you don’t want damaged you have got to remove it otherwise it will just get stolen, smashed, or weed in.

“They (RBKC) do manage to clear things up very fast, but it could be better organised from the outset. There should be more loos and support for people who can’t afford to board up their properties.”

RBKC have said that they provide a free cleaning service for residents who live in the Carnival footprint. Cllr Kim Taylor-Smith, lead member for Culture, said: “We are immensely proud to host Carnival in our borough and to welcome almost two million people who want to join us in celebrating Caribbean culture at Europe’s biggest community event.

“Clearing up when the music stops and the crowds head home is a huge task for us and our partner SUEZ, and I am grateful to the 200 unsung heroes who were out overnight on Sunday and Monday to clear hundreds of tonnes of rubbish.

“Their hard work means that our residents and businesses in Notting Hill woke up on Tuesday morning to find their streets restored to normal just hours after the end of this year’s Carnival.”

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