The float carrying Keighley gala queen Serena Gunputh -pictured above - was pelted with eggs as it made its way down Victoria Road, Keighley, on Saturday.
The queen's cloak was spattered with yolk as an egg thrown by a group of youths hit her.
Serena's float was one of several which came under attack soon after the procession began its journey to Victoria Park. Gala chairman Brian Hudson halted the stream of floats, vintage vehicles and people on foot to prevent further damage.
"It was done deliberately," he says. "They had gone armed to spoil the procession. It was a deliberate act of sabotage on a major event. The only option I had was to stop the procession."
He says spectators in Victoria Road were very angry about what happened. "But it was right at the beginning of the event and did not spoil it," he says.
Police confirm that they are investigating. "We are pursuing lines of enquiry," says a spokesman.
In another incident, a child who ran into the path of a police outrider accompanying an ambulance on an emergency call during the procession sustained minor injuries.
Gala photos, pages 6&7
Picture special and reports pages 6 and 7
Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.
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