People began arriving on Saturday

Police have arrested 15 people suspected of being involved in the organisation of an illegal rave at a farm near Leominster in Herefordshire.

A criminal investigation is under way into the unauthorised music festival at Stretford Court which attracted up to 3,000 people from as far away as France and Sweden.

West Mercia Police officers confiscated large amounts of sound equipment and alcohol and further arrests are expected.

The party started on Saturday afternoon and revellers began leaving the site on Tuesday.

'Seeking organisers'

A police operation is underway to cope with the movement of pedestrians and vehicles, to control traffic flow and make sure everyone leaves the site safely.

A group of officers from West Mercia Police were abused and pelted with bottles and glasses by adults and some children when they entered the site on Sunday morning.

It felt a bit like being under siege Penny Matthews

One person has been taken to hospital suffering the effects of drink or drugs.

Inspector Bob Barnett said the site had quietened down on Tuesday and they believed a large number of people had left overnight.

He said: "We are still trying to seek out the organisers of the event.

"They will be prosecuted as it's an illegal rave.

"When we went to the site we were subjected to a large amount of verbal abuse and bottles and glasses were thrown - not just by adults but by children. And they also used dogs."

He added: "Investigations are continuing."

'Turn-back policy'

Residents living in the nearby hamlets of Upper Ivington and Hyde Ash complained of excessive noise and traffic problems in the area.

Police had been operating a "turn-back" policy to prevent more people arriving at the site.

Penny Matthews, who lives a mile from the site in Upper Ivington, said she felt as though she was "under siege" in her home.

She told BBC News Online: "We didn't even try to get out of our house.

"People were coming down our lanes, which are only 14 feet wide, and parking there on my neighbours' driveways.

'Beer cans'

"The police had also set up road blocks and with the police helicopter and dog handling vans, it felt a bit like being under siege."

She added: "The really terrible thing though was the noise. It was the loudest I had ever heard and it was just reverberating around the house like a pile driver.

"My partner is deaf in one ear and usually doesn't hear music but he heard this."

Ms Matthews said the music was switched off in the early hours of Tuesday and people were starting to leave the site.

"It has been traumatic. All the ditches and hedges along the road were smashed down and bashed.

"Beer cans have also been left along the road."

But the partygoers had a more laid back attitude about inconvenience to local people.

One said: "I feel a bit of remorse towards them but I think it's worth it because there are so many people having a good time that I reckon it outweighs a few people being disturbed."