An animated Christmas light show in Lisburn has been suspended, after the number of visitors it attracted was considered to be a health and safety risk.
The decision was made by Lisburn and Castlereagh City Council due to a "significant increase in the number of people in the city" on Saturday.
The light show is part of the annual Lisburn Light Festival, which runs between November and January and costs around £535,000. It includes a 100ft "light tunnel" and an animated light show. However, the council said the light tunnel will be temporarily turned off and the animations suspended, although the lights in the animated section would remain on.
In a statement, they commented that they had "implemented additional safety measures over the weekend to ensure that people could enjoy the animations safely".
"However, we have noticed a significant increase in the number of people in the city today to view the lights."
Simon Lee, a Green Party councillor, posted on social media that the council's chief executive told him the decision was taken "because of safety concerns" around the number of people gathering, and stopping to take selfies in the light tunnel and creating a backlog.
Mr Lee told BBC News NI the light show had been a "victim of its own success" at a time when Covid-19 restrictions are in place. He said the attraction was always considered to be a "potential danger" but "there was never a question of the council not closely monitoring numbers".
He went on to clarify that the light show was suspended but had not been cancelled and the council will be reviewing the situation.
