THE rider of a quad bike was injured when his machine overturned while riding on illegally on Orsett Heath.

The incident, which was witnessed by local residents who then turned out to applaud the emergency services, has prompted a call from Essex Police for people to engage with them to try and stamp out the problem of rogue riders.

Police, together with the air ambulance and East of England paramedics, attended the incident on the heath near Chadwell St Mary just after 3pm on Saturday (13 June).

The rider of the bike suffered facial injuries. He was stablished by medics on board the Essex & Herts AIr Ambulance, before being taken to Basildon & Thurrock Hospital. As the air ambulance left residents stood and applauded the emergency services.

A statement from the air ambulance service said: ""An air ambulance was tasked to assist East of England Ambulance Service and Essex Police with a male patient involved in a road traffic collision in Grays.

"Teams worked together on scene to optimise patient outcome. One man was transported by road ambulance to Queens Hospital for further assessment and care."

In the wake of the incident Essex Police acknowledged that quad bike, and other illegal bike riding, was a problem in the area and said: "Quad bikes in this area do appear to have been common, but these incidents haven't been reported to us so we can't investigate.

"We encourage anyone who witnesses anti-social behaviour to report it to us. Your information can make a difference and help your local community.

"Please report anti-social behaviour via our website or by calling 101."