A CROWD of more than 100 people took part in a special religious festival on the beach at Walton.

The Hindu water-cutting festival, called Diya Kaepima, took place by the sea on Sunday.

The spiritual ceremony involves collecting water and bathing in it to remove evil. Members of the Sri Marupuram Maha Pathirakali Amman Temple in Walthamstow chose Walton for the ceremony and travelled to the coast to take part.

It was set up with the help of Tendring Council, and the authority’s beach patrol team even got involved in the event.

Council coast boss Nick Turner said: “We were very pleased to assist the temple and delighted that they chose to come to Tendring as part of their festival.”