Weymouth beach at midday today 07.08.20 as the UK is hit by a heatwave. Beaches along the Dorset coast have today become over crowded and visitor were being urged to leave as car parks were becoming packed.
Credit BBC....Beach-goers in Dorset are being urged to "head home" as resorts and car parks in some areas are already full.
A mobile app to aid social distancing is showing red along four areas of the coast - including at Sandbanks and Bournemouth West - meaning "avoid".
Police and the county's councils have urged people to "enjoy Dorset safely this weekend" ahead of expected high temperatures of 27C (80F).
Council officers, as well as police, are patrolling some seafronts.
"Head home" at Sandbanks
Image caption
A "head home" sign has been illuminated on the seafront at Sandbanks
A joint statement from emergency services, Dorset Council, Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP) Council and NHS, said "evidence gathered" over recent weeks had shown "people are using their common sense and are leaving places which feel too busy to be socially distanced from other people".
BCP Council recently launched an app to show potential visitors the "hot spots" along a seven-mile stretch between Poole Harbour and Highcliffe.
The authority said the app had already been downloaded more than 24,000 times, with a further 4,000 downloads expected over the weekend.
There have also been requests for it to be made available for other beaches across the UK.
Durdle DoorImage copyrightGWYN JONES
Image caption
The car park at Durdle Door is also likely to reach capacity, with extra enforcement staff in place
In Sandbanks, where sun-seekers gathered in their droves last week, a "head home" sign was illuminated by about 10:30 BST on Friday alongside a "car park full" notice.
Dorset Council said it was "monitoring the situation closely" and had "robust plans in place to manage the anticipated high numbers of visitors".
It said its beaches were "filling up" but there had been no reported issues.
A spokeswoman said extra parking enforcement staff had been deployed to the coast, with Durdle Door car park expected to reach capacity.
"We will urge visitors to go elsewhere at that point," she added.