THIS year’s Chester Pride event, which was due to take place tomorrow, has been postponed.

Organisers have announced that the event, which celebrates the borough’s LGBT+ community, will no longer go ahead tomorrow due to forecasted extreme weather conditions.

It is hoped that the event can be rescheduled.

The Met Office states that high winds of up to 50mph are expected in the area tomorrow, and therefore it is feared that the conditions would be unsafe to hold the Pride event.

Warren Lee Allmark, chairman of the Chester Pride volunteer committee, said: “12 months of hard planning and overcoming obstacles to make sure event is a success has for me been summed up when I have 12 fantastic members of the committee sit and cry in front of me.

“The team and I have worked non-stop on this project and we are truly saddened, however there is a silver lining that we are able to reschedule at short notice in fact to Cheshire West & Chester Councils events Team, Service providers and local authorities. We will face some really hard operational issues but we are fully behind the event and will do our very best to make sure that 2019 is a year to remember.

“A GoFundMe fundraising page has been set up to help recover some of the lost costs. As a free event, we rely on donations along with sponsors to help us put on this event, so the communities support is more important now than ever.”

Cllr Louise Gittins, leader of Cheshire West and Chester Council, added: “We are extremely saddened to hear of the decision to postpone Chester Pride on Saturday, August 10, due to the severe weather forecast and warnings in place.

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“We have worked closely with the organisers to look at every possible option, but we feel that it is the right decision to ensure the safety of all involved.

“We understand the amount of hard work and time that goes into planning an event like this and the committee has done an amazing job.

“We will continue to work with them to promote equality and diversity throughout the borough and hopefully secure a date for the event to take place later in the year.”

To donate via the gofundme page, visit gofundme.com/f/save-chester-pride