A NUMBER of beach huts were broken into over the weekend, with fears the properties are being deliberately targeted by thieves.

Passer-bys noticed the doors of several beach huts adjacent to Uncle Tom’s Cabin, Shoebury, had been opened as they passed at around 7.30am on Sunday morning, with some damage to the exteriors and the contents of the huts clearly disturbed.

The weekend before two huts were also broken into, close to Thorpe Bay Yacht Club.

Dave Seaman, 53, from Sandpiper Close, Shoebury, came across the damage on Sunday morning and wedged the doors closed to prevent further disturbance.

He said: “It didn’t look like children rifling causing trouble, more like adults had been specifically rifling through to find valuables.

“The doors were just left wide open - people pay a lot of money for the huts and its such a shame that they can’t have peace of mind about how they are left.”

In previous burglaries, thieves have stolen items such as cooking equipment, with a pair of binoculars being stolen in this spate.

John Stenson, chairman of the Southend Beach Hut Owners Association said: “It’s always been a problem, but it has been particularly severe this year. Though we do still get cases of petty vandalism, a lot more of the cases we have seen seem to be targeted.

“We will always work with our members to keep their beach buts and belongings as safe as possible and follow comprehensive advice from the police.”

A spokesperson for Southend Council, which employs foreshore officers to manage the seafront within certain hours, said: “The beach huts are privately leased and the occupiers are responsible for their physical security.

“The foreshore officers are not a security service but do of course report any suspicious activity to Essex Police if they see it.

“We advise beach hut owners not to keep valuables in the beach huts, to ensure they are adequately secured at all times and to report any suspicious activity or break-ins swiftly to Essex Police.”

An Essex Police spokesperson said: “We were called at around 8.10am on Sunday, August 12 to reports a number of beach huts had been broken into in Shoebury Common Road, Shoebury. If you have any information please call us on 101 quoting incident 387 of 12/08 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.”