..to think that the London Marathon water theives should be named and shamed?

[Jaimx86]

I'm horrified at the news of looters (small group) stealing from the London Marathon water station at Deptford! Some adults are using their child's pram to carry all of the bottles they're taking.
What will people do next year if this goes unpunished? Steal the runners' phones and trainers as they go past?!
The London Marathon Event Manager has said it will be investigated.

[HoneyDragon]

I agree with everything MrsDV said.

I've also volunteered/been involved with running events and have only just recently finished a couple of crates of water from one.

I'm such a savage.

Oh no, hang on its because we were told to take it home if we wanted it.

That way the water didn't have to be transported and stored at a cost, and a risk of being tampered with before the next event. At events were logistics allow it it goes to local food banks too, you get representives you will wait and load it.

The problem with the films going viral and into the press like this is the people featured in them haven't got the right to reply.

[EnthusiasmDisturbed]

So people thought well it's the end of the race we should do our bit for the community and help clear away some of the water bottles as the runners won't need them

What utter bollocks people saw an opportunity and took as much as they can because some people just take take take and think nothing of it it's down to greed

[MumOnTheRunCatchingUp]

So if it's all ok and they were told to help themselves, why are they taking the water with hoods up, trying to disguise themselves and being so rushed ?

[MumOnTheRunCatchingUp]

And Buxton water Marshall says on the video what a sorry state it was that they were stealing it

Thieving scum

[MissHooliesCardigan]

I really can't get too worked up about this. DS1 and DD have both manned water stations for the Marathon. Every time, there has been loads left over and they were told to encourage people to take it as it means it's quicker to clear up.
There is an incredibly anal attitude to stealing on Mumsnet. Posters are told that they should drive 20 miles to pay back the £5 that a shop undercharged them. Someone was called a 'fucking thieving cunt' for putting an almond croissant through the self service checkout as a bread roll. I never see this attitude in RL. I visit Deptford quite a lot for work. Yes, it is poor. But the people are happy.

[bloodyteenagers]

It's a shame I no longer have footage for the past few years where it clearly shows similar after people were told to help themselves.

[EnthusiasmDisturbed]

The people in Depford happy that is so patronising

I am sure some are but it is a deprived part of London, high crime rates, high rates of dv, overcrowded accommodation, gangs causing problems, drug issues

Like people is more affluent areas of London want better and many are struggling with the impact these issues have on the community and their families

I really not sure what job you do to come out what that statement

[whois]

we're not that third world a country that water is a valuable resource. Just get it out a tap

^ this!

[MissHooliesCardigan]

Enthusiasm I was being ironic. I'm a psychiatric nurse covering Lewisham (which includes Deptford) In fact I'm on my way there now to visit a refugee family with 3 DCs living in one room with mice running around everywhere. I know how deprived it is. That is one of the reasons the rates of mental illness are so high.

[Zaurak]

I ran the Edinburgh as part of a relay (2009 I think) and this happened! It was awful ... It was a really hot day (yes we do get hot days) and without water we really suffered. I was runni g with friends dressed up and they were in a right state - I had to run back and forth getting water from people who came into the course to give it.

To the lady with the hose pipe - you're a saint! I've never forgotten you!

[EnthusiasmDisturbed]

Oops sorry MissHooliesCardigan too early for me to read ironic messages

[southwest1]

They do encourage people to take what isn't used. I'm sure in that clip you can see the closure car which has a big flashing sign on the back saying the course is now closed please continue on the footpath. If you are behind that car then you don't get water, first aid or anything else as the course is closed. At Woolwich which is mile 3, there were a lot more people than normal behind that car. The road cleaners were cleaning the roads in front of them and the roads were preparing to be reopened.

[MissHooliesCardigan]

Enthusiasm no worries.

[MackerelOfFact]

The water would have been donated for free by Buxton as part of their sponsorship. Sometimes in the height of summer they do a similar thing at some of the larger tube stations so it's not something they do exclusively for marathon runners.

As long as there was sufficient water available for competitors I don't see the problem with people taking the surplus. It's obviously greedy to take entire crates but you'll always get chancers who think they're entitled to take the whole lot.

[LunaLoveg00d]

By all means name them.

But naming them won't make them ashamed of their actions, this sort of scum just don't care.

[BadDoGooder]

Fucking hell, people take leftover water that lots of people on this thread are saying they were probably offered as it helps with clear up, and they get called "thieving scum"?
Nice.
To me it's clear the race had passed, but for a handful of stragglers. They weren't taking water that would have otherwise gone to thirsty runners, they had all gone past.

Who gives a fuck if they sold it to the local corner shop? I'm guessing that a spare £5 would make a difference to those people, even if it goes on cider, fags or weed.
Sometimes that's all people have to get them through the week.

As for someone putting a croissant through as a bread roll, whoop de fucking do. Until supermarkets pay decent wages and proper taxes, I can't muster up an ounce of outrage about stuff like that. And if you really believe that people not stealing would mean higher wages/lower prices, that's just naive. They'd still pay the same, just increase the profits for their shareholders instead.

[TrickyD]

People are being greedy. Its not edifying but I doubt very much it is exactly how it has been presented.

Highly likely, MrsDeVere

Yet I do wonder if 'looters' would have received so much sympathy on MN had they been wearing UKIP or St George teeshirts, or any other right-wing identifiers.

[Tessabelle74]

At the end of the race the water is given away to whomever wants it as the organisers don't collect it. It wasn't stolen!

[bloodyteenagers]

Buxton donate water to the marathon every year. People in the vicinity afterwards are given water. The people are asked to take as many crates as possible. Yes I have taken crates. Really who wouldn't?

Buxton also donate water around tube stations in the summer.

In the summer they go to local events in London and give away water.

They have donated water to a local play scheme.

I have even seen the water in the middle of summer in some markets, been given away. (I am mentioning London, hopefully they do the same in other parts of the country).

If the above are single day events, at the end they give crates of water away. But I suppose the guy in the video will be twisting that with his camera next time. And as for hoodies. I hate being filmed and cameras. When I see one I put up my hood, but I suppose that makes me thieving scum.

The water bottles are not the regular sizes in store. They are smaller at 200 - 250 ml (have seen both sizes given at these events)

As for well turn on the water and have a drink. If you are on the breadline and faced with running water and paying the water bill or taking free water. What you going to do? Oh yea, I forgot. This doesn't happen anywhere in the UK as no-one is poor.

It's not just Buxton who do this. Other companies show up for one day with loads of stock (publicity stunt) and towards the end of the day, they stop with the one per person thing and give out loads.

[MissHooliesCardigan]

Bad You don't care about someone putting a croissant through as a bread roll??!! Think what would happen if everyone did that, it would be the end of civilised society.
Those of you calling these people 'scum', what adjectives do you use to describe rapists and murderers?

[lotbyname]

Went to see the marathon near my house last year. It was the same thing. People go insane for free things. A woman had taken her toddler out of the pushchair to put more water into it. We stood NEXTTO some water bottles and two men came and shouted at us to get our own. I understand that it makes sense to get rid of the surplus that they need in case of hot weather but we made sure to leave earlier this year. It was like a mob. Not stealing however.

[lotbyname]

Also if these people are being shamed on television out of context then it is massively unfair and I pity them.

[herethereandeverywhere]

Southwest

But there are always people still finishing the course after the back marker. The strugglers and stragglers who probably need the water more than most as they're unlikely to be in peak physical fitness. Certainly the video shows runners still passing by as the slabs of water are being stacked waist high and taken away.

Would waiting until no more runners passed have been too much for the water-takers to bear?

[Oysterbabe]

There's no way you can wait until the last stragglers have passed, some will take about 10 hours. There are cut off times and the course needs to be cleared up and the roads reopened. They're aware that water is not provided after a certain time and the decision as to whether they still want to enter is theirs.

[Roseformeplease]

I am uneasy about this story for a couple of reasons. It began its Facebook like on a feed from a dubious source (can't remember what but think racist, anti-immigrant) and seems to have snowballed from there. The people in the footage are all black (or that I could see) and either young men or women and kids.

I am not sure what conclusion to draw but I always want to look at the source of things like this and also the point being made by the way in which the footage is shown. It could be captioned "Local volunteers clean up Deptford" and there would be a totally different story.

Interesting.