Huge rubbish pile left after travellers' camp moved off Smethwick park - WATCH
Tyres, mattresses, chairs, rubbish and rubble - this huge pile of waste has left one Black Country park resembling a tip.
But this is the massive clean up operation now facing the authorities after an illegal travellers' camp was moved on.
Mounds of waste lay strewn across Black Patch Park, in Smethwick, to the dismay of people living nearby.
One spotted a lorry dumping rubbish on the park, reputedly the birthplace of silent movie legend Charlie Chaplin.
Travellers' caravans have been spotted this afternoon around land near Blakeley Wood, between Tipton and Wednesbury.
Smethwick Police announced that an illegal encampment was moved on from Black Patch Park yesterday.
Yet this is the scene of chaos left behind with rubbish left behind at the parkland in the aftermath.
This comes after travellers' caravans were moved on in Oldbury yesterday - including from the car park close to Sandwell Council House.
Workers had to park elsewhere in the town after caravans appeared over the weekend on the car park off West Bromwich Street.
Caravan were later seen pulling on to spaces at Portway Leisure Centre on Newbury Lane.
Travellers setting up illegal camps in Sandwell will now face swift action under new tough powers which can see them moved on within 24 hours.
Reporter Jamie Brassington has been at the scene today.
Sandwell Council has been informing residents.
Waste has also been accumulating over recent weeks, say businesses nearby.
It is not yet know how much the clean up operation will cost or how long it will take to remove the waste.
They were there for less than five days and left tons of rubbish behind.
Sandwell Council Leader Councillor Steve Eling said: "The mess at Black Patch Park is an absolute disgrace. Tons of rubbish were dumped there within just a matter of days.
"We've now secured the Black Patch site and staff are now trying to find any evidence of who is responsible for this rubbish.
"The people who pay to have rubbish taken away which is then dumped also have a responsibility to make sure it's disposed of properly.
"If we can link this rubbish to any business or individual who has failed to make sure it's been properly disposed of, we will be taking action against them, too."
Fly-tipping carries a fine of up to £40,000. Anyone who transports waste without a waste carrier licence can be fined up to £5,000.
