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Lisburn Christmas light show suspended over Covid fears

Lisburn and Castlereagh Borough Council Animated light show during the Lisburn Light FestivalLisburn and Castlereagh Borough Council
An animated light show is one of the main attractions of the annual Lisburn Light Festival, which will cost the council £535,000

An animated Christmas light show in Lisburn has been suspended after the number of visitors it attracted was deemed to be a safety risk.

Lisburn and Castlereagh City Council made the decision due to a "significant increase in the number of people in the city" on Saturday.

The light show is part of the annual Lisburn Light Festival, which runs between November and January.

The festival includes a 100ft "light tunnel" and an animated light show.

The festival will cost the council £535,000, according to minutes from a council development committee meeting in October.

However, the council said the light tunnel will be temporarily turned off and the animations suspended, although the lights in the animated section would remain on.

In a statement, it said it had "implemented additional safety measures over the weekend to ensure that people could enjoy the animations safely".

"However, we have noticed a significant increase in the number of people in the city today to view the lights."

Simon Lee, a Green Party councillor, posted on social media that the council's chief executive informed him the decision was taken "because of safety concerns" around the number of people gathering.

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Mr Lee told BBC News NI the light show had been a "victim of its own success" at a time when Covid-19 restrictions are in place.

He said the attraction was always considered to be a "potential danger" but "there was never a question of the council not closely monitoring numbers".

"People like to take selfies without people in the background and this can create a backlog," he explained.

Mr Lee said the light show was suspended, but had not been cancelled.

Lisburn and Castlereagh Borough Council Lights tunnel during the Lisburn Light FestivalLisburn and Castlereagh Borough Council
The council said the light tunnel would be temporarily switched off

"I still have concerns, but I don't believe it is the end of the light show," he added.

The council's statement added: "We apologise to those who were looking forward to viewing the animations over the coming week.

"However, this decision has been taken with the health and safety of everyone visiting our city in mind."

"We will be reviewing the situation very carefully and will provide an update in due course."