A BRADFORD park has turned into a "health hazard" after travellers were blamed for dumping piles of rubbish on the site.

Now furious councillors and residents fear they will be the ones left to foot the clean-up bill after a group of eight caravans camped out at Eccleshill Park, in Park Road.

Yesterday morning only three of the eight caravans remained at the site, alongside two 4x4 vehicles and two cars.

But the travellers have also left piles of rubbish in numerous locations across the park.

Items dumped there include concrete breeze blocks, a front door, a wheelbarrow, broken wooden panels, household rubbish and empty polythene bags used for dried sand.

The park is next to Holybrook Primary School in Rillington Mead and an adventure playground called 'Big Swing'.

The park's paths are also used as a cut-through to the school, which have been blocked by the traveller's vehicles.

Officials at Bradford Council were granted a possession order yesterday to remove the remaining travellers, who moved onto the park on September 16, after a hearing at Bradford County Court.

But Eccleshill cllr Geoff Reid (Lib Dem) said the council may be left to pay for the rubbish to be cleared.

He said: "It's a health hazard at the moment.

"The council will have to take some action to clean the place up and we may not have anyone to send the bill to.

"If it's a matter of enforcement now, it's going to be a messy business in more ways than one.

"It's the last place in Eccleshill we want to see that. We have few enough green spaces as it is. This is a place parents and young children pass by every day.

"I did hope they would have disappeared before it came to court.

"The residents have got very frustrated over the past week.

"It's profoundly unsuitable. We were furious last week, we are just angry now.

"It's not annoying, it's strange."

A Rookwith Parade resident, who did not want to be named, said: "I'm hoping they're not going to leave that rubbish there.

"I don't know if they will clean it up or the council will have to clean it up.

"I never would have believed it that they would come and park in there."

A spokesman for Bradford Council said: "As with every case of illegal traveller encampments on council land, as soon as we are made aware of the situation we will apply to the court to obtain a possession order for the site to remove those camped on it.

"When they have moved on we will clean up the site and restore it to its original condition as soon as possible."