Barbecues bought for £100k by council out of action after 10 days because lazy users are refusing to clean grills

BARBECUES bought for £100,000 by a council are out of action after just 10 days because lazy users are refusing to clean the grills.

But one Bournemouth councillor asked: “Who is going to bring a scrubber and detergent with them to a beach?”

The £106,000 communal electric cooking stations were opened to great fanfare three weeks ago by officials at the coastal beauty spot in Dorset.

The plan was for users to clean up the grills after they finished cooking on the promenade - but most people can't be bothered.

Now, disgusting congealed fat is clogging up storage containers underneath the barbecues, because they've also not been emptied.

They have been left unattended for so long the stations had to be temporarily closed for a "deep clean".

Cllr Vikki Slade said: "We are not Australia.

"This is Bournemouth. This is a vanity project and an absolute farce and the fact it was screwed up within a week says it all.

"The money could have been so much better spent on other projects which are needed, not something nobody wanted."

Cllr Slade said she had "spoken out about this project from the start. Who is going to bring a scrubber and detergent with them to a beach?

"The issue from my understanding is that the barbecues have cooking plates and the fat runs into a storage container underneath but the council had not arranged for them to be emptied.

"When they finally realised this they had to close the barbecues and do a deep clean.

"Whether or not the people who are using them are cleaning them or not, these fat containers need to be emptied daily by the council.

"Will vegetarians or Muslims want to use them? Visitors are still much more likely to use a disposable barbecue on the sand."

We are not Australia.

Cllr Vikki Slade

However, the Sun Online has published multiple stories about people suffering horrendous burns after stepping on scorching sand after stepping where a BBQ had been used at the beach.

In total, Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council has paid for 10 electric barbecues, costing about £10,000 each, to be installed along the seven-mile promenade.

Made from "corrosion resistant, low maintenance stainless steel", they automatically switch on and off for energy efficiency, and will be available for use all-year round on a first-come, first-served basis.

The first three have been installed at Branksome Chine, with others due to be put in at the end of the summer.

'WORK WELL IN AUSTRALIA'

At their unveiling, Drew Mellor, leader of the Tory-run council, said: "People can rock up, turn it on, do their cooking, all in 20 minutes and then they will turn off automatically.

"We ask people to clean them afterwards, but our seafront officers will also check them as part of their patrols.

"We have seen them work very well in Australia and we feel it is a real investment for the conurbation."

However, Bob Lister, chairman of the Poole Beach Huts Association, said: "The three at Branksome Chine are out of action.

"They have been for the last four days - they were only in action for ten days.

"They are usually covered in sand."

'GOLD-PLATED'

The barbecues were labelled a "waste of money" by residents on social media, with one person joking they must be "gold-plated" to justify their cost.

Paul Djemaa wrote: "Lol £106.000??!! Wasted money again by BCP council, what were they gold plated??"

Chris Cummings posted: "£10k for a BBQ. They've been mugged off, mine was £40 from Argos!"

Carol Masterman said: "People don't take their rubbish away from the beach so expect that they will clean a bbq?"

A BCP Council spokesman apologised that the barbecues were closed "for a few days" and confirmed they are now operational.

He added: "We apologise for the fact that the three beach barbecues at Branksome Chine were closed for a few days.

"This was due to staffing issues but they are now fully operational.

"A further seven electric barbecues will be opening soon at Fisherman’s Walk and east of Bournemouth Beach."