Trespassers are being warned to stay out of Chinnor quarry amid reports it was "overwhelmed" with hundreds of people over the weekend.

The quarry may look like a beautiful place to spend a sunny day, but it is private land and swimming in the water is "extremely dangerous", police have warned.

There is a possibility the flooded quarry is contaminated and could cause illness and skin irritation - but neighbours reported seeing families paddling in the water.

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Posts on Instagram tagged with the location 'Chinnor Quarry' show pictures and videos of people jumping into the quarry and allowing their pets to swim in it.

One nearby resident said hundreds of visitors, who had apparently travelled from all over the country to visit, were blocking up the roads for residents and leaving litter and human and animal excrement everywhere on Saturday.

The quarry is privately owned by Taylor Wimpey and security had to be brought in to move on those who had visited.

A resident said: "This is supposed to be a safe place for animals but it is full of litter, excrement (human and animal) and the poor animals are being scared away.

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"These are old quarries and unsafe to swim but there are people bringing babies to paddle. The water has sudden drops, it's chemical ridden and has large machinery at the bottom.

"Please do not come here, there's no social distancing and the place is overwhelmed."

On Facebook, resident Gordon Britton said the scene was "carnage" on Saturday, and praised police for their actions on Sunday.

Karon Roden added: "A couple of weeks ago there were loads of whole families in the quarry with kids paddling and swimming. This quarry has and always will be a problem as far as this goes."

Bucks Free Press:

Photo by Elliot Chadley

Police said they will be "looking into" restrictions of parking in the area to avoid access routes being blocked, especially for emergency services, adding that they will continue to monitor the area.

Meanwhile, similar warnings have been made by Hertfordshire Police about Pitstone Quarry, near Tring.

Pitstone Quarry is also private land, with Herts Police warning of "significant danger" of trying to swim in it.

They said: "Swimming in quarry water is dangerous. Water temperatures can be 80 degrees at ankle-deep and then 40 degrees at just below the surface. This can shock a swimmer’s system and cause them to panic.

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"The sides can be steep and are a mixture of clay, soft silt and gravel, which can shift underfoot. Pits can run as deep as 60 feet.

"In addition, they pose other dangers such as dead animals/excrement can cause disease, pollution/rubbish can cause eye and skin irritations, stomach problems, fungal infections and rashes and poisonous/toxic algae.

"The location also makes it difficult for emergency services to access if someone needs assistance."