Visitors to Bawsey Estate and Country Park warned once again over dangers of entering water
Visitors to a popular country park are once again being warned of the dangers of swimming in the water.
Bawsey Estate and Country Park is often busy in the summer months, but with previous tragedies at the site, there are concerns that visitors are not heeding the warning signs to not enter the water.
Les Collinson and Steve Murfet, who are directors of Bawsey Bay Watersports at the site, want to get the message across regarding the dangers of entering the water to swim unaccompanied or use inflatables.
It’s after four people have drowned at Bawsey since 2013, two of them in the past three years.
Back in July 2013, the park was the scene of a double tragedy when a 16-year-old boy and a local man both drowned, with further fatalities in August 2020 and June 2021.
Safety events have been organised in response to the tragedies at the site but visitors keep flocking to the park to socialise and in some cases, swim – and this has continued to happen during the recent heatwave.
Mr Collinson said: “We have been running watersports for the last 15-20 years and also run kayaking at Hunstanton.
“I have been involved with emergency services including the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) in my career so we are up there with safety.
“Bawsey is a lovely location to visit but we need to hammer home the safety message to those who are a law unto themselves.
“It is on our doorstep and people can enjoy it if they use it properly.
“When there is partying and drinking, some visitors think they can swim to the island or across to the other side, but something can go wrong.
“We are trying our best to stop someone from drowning but people are not taking responsibility.
“Be responsible for your own actions and take notice of the experts to keep yourself and your family safe.
“Take heed of the warnings.”
The message from Bawsey Estate and Country Park itself remains the same: “Stay out of the water and stay safe”.
A post on its Facebook page from last weekend said: “Bawsey Country Park does not allow swimming or unauthorised watersports in either of our lakes. However, many of our visitors choose to ignore this and put themselves and others at risk.”
It added that there are no lifeguards on site, so any staff member who sees someone in trouble in the water will follow advice from the fire and rescue service and call 999, but the response time is likely to be at least 15 minutes.
“It will take a minute or two to drown,” it said.
“Therefore the emergency services are likely to be retrieving a body rather than rescuing someone.
“The authorised on-site watersports activities are managed by professional instructors using proper kit and safety equipment. However, they are not there to monitor unauthorised activities.
“It may be hot, the water may look inviting, you may not think it will happen to you. Please MAKE THE RIGHT CHOICE and STAY OUT OF THE WATER.
“If this comes across as hard hitting, we apologise however, we want people to respect our rules. We want people to visit the park, have a lovely time and go home safely.
“We say this because we care and would urge anyone reading this post to SHARE it as widely as possible. Thank you.”
