A TRAGEDY is waiting to happen on Morecambe Bay's notorious quicksands in the wake of 500 cockling permits being issued in just 10-days.

The dire warning has come after hordes of cocklers have swamped Bolton-le-Sands - leaving up to 70 vehicles in the village and thousands of decaying shellfish lying around.

While concerns are escalating on several fronts, Hest Bank sands expert Alan Sledmore says the cavalier attitude of cocklers towards one of the country's most lethal estuaries are 'very worrying'.

Rescue operations for vehicles getting stuck in quicksands, a cockle gatherer lost in the mist and a tractor dropping into a six feet deep hole have, so far, been successful. But health and safety consultant Mr Sledmore says the writing is on the wall.

"Most of these people are from outside the area and have no idea of the dangers. They are crossing the Keer channel, the worst of the quicksands. The first vehicles are getting over, but they loosen the sands so following tractors and bikes get stuck.

"If they are caught on their way out, it's not too bad. There is time to drag them out. Getting stuck on the way back - when the tide is due in - is another matter. Only experienced people should be out there."

North Western and North Wales Sea Fisheries Committee started issuing cockling permits on December 1, after surveys revealed there were more than 5,000 tonnes of mature cockles at Warton Sands.

A spokesman confirmed yesterday (Wednesday) that 500 permits were handed out in 10 days. There are no restrictions on numbers and they are given to anyone with proof of identity and a National Insurance number.

Bolton-le-Sands has found itself besieged with cocklers, vehicles and debris.

One of the worst realisations is that the village will have to pick up the bill for any clean-up.

Parish council chairman and Lancaster City Cllr Keith Budden told the Citizen: "it's a disgraceful situation. I have been on to environmental health because there are thousands of dead and decaying cockles left littered around. The smell is terrible. Rotting items should not be left unattended.

" But I have been told by the city council that the parish will have to pay for any clearing up."

He goes on: "The whole thing is appalling. Licenses are issued for six months at a time so there will be no let-up."

Up to 70 vehicles a day are being left in the village's car parks and by the shore, leaving no space for locals or visitors, Cllr Budden adds. And he estimates that around 100 tonnes of shellfish are being taken in a single day.

Cllr Budden says he also feared lives are being put at great risk and disaster could strike any time among the cocklers.

Lancaster City Cllr for Bolton-le-Sands Tony Johnson says although police are monitoring the situation regularly, there is nothing that officers can do.

Morecambe police sergeant Shaun McKirgan says that if residents have 'special concerns' over issues such as illegal tipping they should contact police or the city council's environmental health department, which is currently carrying out its own investigation into the situation along the shore.