A pair of music festivals that were expected to attract 6,000 people to Great Yarmouth have been called off due to concerns over the coronavirus.

The hard rock and metal events were to take place over two consecutive weekends - March 12 to 14 and 19 to 21 - at Vauxhall Holiday Park.

And while organisers Chic Festivals have stated the events have been "postponed but not cancelled", a spokesperson for the holiday park has said the decision was disappointing and "not in line with current government guidance".

A statement emailed from Chic Festivals to its customers said: "It's with a heavy heart we are taking the decision to postpone HRH AOR and Hammerfest due to a 'force majeure' scenario.

"With the recent outbreak of coronavirus across Europe, we have been monitoring the situation daily. We do feel it will get worse before it gets better.

"However with such a large percentage of customers and bands flying in from all over Europe, some from countries which have seen the number of cases recently escalate dramatically, we feel that customers, bands, press and staff safety and wellbeing are our primary concern."

MORE: Three more cases of coronavirus in east of EnglandBoth festivals normally take place indoors over three days.

"Taking all factors into account, we feel morally motivated to postpone the event to a future date which we are now working on with various parties," the organisers said.

"Although this is a disappointment, we feel everyone must work together to minimize the risk of this awful virus. A three-day contained environment with a mature audience and people travelling in from infected areas is just too much of a risk to ignore."

The organisers say they are busy working with every party involved to secure revised dates.

A spokesperson for Vauxhall Holiday Park said: "We're disappointed that Chic Festivals Ltd have cancelled HRH AOR & Hammerfest, a decision which is not in line with current government guidance.

"We'd like to reassure owners and guests that we're monitoring the situation closely and following Government recommendations.

"It remains business as usual at Vauxhall, and all our other 66 parks."