Fire chiefs call for urgent action on drownings
Fire chiefs are calling for urgent national action to prevent drownings after a 16-year-old boy died while swimming in a lake during a spell of hot weather.
The National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC) has urged the Government to give fire services in England a legal duty to respond to water emergencies, such as rescues in rivers, lakes and canals.
The call comes during the NFCC's Be Water Aware campaign and as emergency services report a rise in water-related incidents.
The teenager died after getting into difficulty at Colwick Country Park in Nottingham on Wednesday evening. His body was recovered hours later.
Chief Inspector David Mather of Nottinghamshire Police said: 'While work is now under way to understand how the boy came into difficulty, I would like to take this opportunity to highlight this case as a reminder of the devastating consequences of entering open water – regardless of whether people do so deliberately or inadvertently.'
Tom Staples, from Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service, said the incident was a 'stark reminder' of the hidden dangers in open water.
NFCC water safety lead Chris Kirby said: '1,400 people have died in accidental drowning incidents across just five years.
'We need urgent action to prevent anybody else coming to harm and that requires steps being taken at a national level.'
The NFCC says the lack of a legal duty in England means fire services face limits on how much they can invest in water rescue training, equipment and education. It also leads to inconsistencies across the UK, with Wales having a statutory duty for inland water rescue, and Scotland and Northern Ireland holding duties in relation to major flooding.
Kirby said clearer responsibilities for fire and rescue services, backed by law and funding, would help improve emergency response and public safety campaigns.
Figures from the Water Incident Database show 1,409 people died in accidental drownings between 2019 and 2023, with more than half in inland waters.
The NFCC also wants the Government to appoint a lead department or minister for water safety to better coordinate prevention work.
Temperatures reached 29.3C at Kew Gardens in London on Thursday – the hottest May 1 on record – with fire services warning of a surge in water incidents.
The London Fire Brigade said such incidents were up 32% last month.
Assistant Commissioner Patrick Goulbourne said: 'Even when the sun is shining, water temperatures can be dangerously cold.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
29 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
BREAKING NEWS Corruption watchdog makes massive call about Brittany Higgins' $2.4MILLION taxpayer-funded compensation payout - as she gets job after 'medically unfit to work' claims
There was 'no corruption issue' found with the $2.4m taxpayer-funded compensation payout handed to Brittany Higgins after just one day of deliberation, the corruption watchdog has reported.
Scottish Sun
2 hours ago
- Scottish Sun
Firm linked to bra tycoon Michelle Mone begins court battle over dodgy Covid kit
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) A FIRM linked to bra tycoon Michelle Mone has begun a court battle to keep £122million it received for dodgy Covid protection kit. UK health chiefs are suing PPE Medpro — which Baroness Mone, 53, and her husband Doug Barrowman, 60, both from Glasgow, had denied for years they were involved with 3 A firm linked to bra tycoon Michelle Mone will appear in court Credit: Corbis 3 The bra tycoon and husband Doug Barrowman Credit: Getty 3 Michelle Mone ahead of the State Opening of Parliament Credit: PA The High Court in London was told 25million surgical gowns had been rejected as unsuitable for the NHS as it was deemed 'non-sterile' with 'invalid technical labelling'. It was later revealed that Baroness Mone had lobbied Tory ministers on behalf of the consortium. Both deny wrongdoing, as do Medpro over gowns supplied in 2020. Paul Stanley KC, for the Department of Health and Social Care, said 'initial contact with the firm came through Baroness Mone' and she remained 'active throughout'. But he added her communications were 'not part of this case', which was 'about compliance'. PPE Medpro won two contracts worth over £200million via the UK Government's 'VIP lane' procurement process. TELLY HOST'S SHOCK By Matt Bendoris BBC host Laura Kuenssberg has revealed the interview that 'sticks' with her the most is when Michelle Mone confessed to being a liar. Scots bra tycoon Mone spent two years fiercely denying through an army of lawyers any involvement with the firm PPE Medro, which had earned over £200million worth of Government contracts to supply face masks and surgical gowns during the Covid pandemic. But in 2023 it was revealed that the Tory life peer and her three adult children had received £29million from the company via her second husband Doug Barrowman. That led to a 'Prince Andrew-style' TV showdown with the politics presenter on her weekly show Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg. Appearing alongside Barrowman, 60, Baroness Mone, 53, made the jaw-dropping confession: 'I can't see what we've done wrong. Lying to the press is not a crime.' Read more HERE It was later revealed Mr Barrowman had received more than £65million in profits from the contracts. And he confirmed he transferred £29million from the firm into a trust benefiting Baroness Mone and her three children. Neither the Tory peer nor her husband are expected to give evidence during the trial. The UK Government is seeking to recover the costs of the contract plus transport and storage expenses. Trial continues. Carol Vorderman reignites feud with ex-pal Michelle Mone in furious rant on This Morning Meanwhile Mone's ex-lawyer has denied telling her to lie about links to a scandal-hit firm. Jonathan Coad insisted the Scots bra tycoon's allegation that he did was 'not true'. Baroness Mone, 53, blamed him for her three-year refusal to confirm her connection to PPE Medpro — given £200million for Covid protection kit and now being probed by cops. Mr Coad, 67, said: 'I did not advise her she should keep her involvement secret. "The suggestion she did so by taking the advice of her lawyers is just not true. "To have Baroness Mone make allegations against me of serious impropriety was potentially very damaging."
The Independent
10 hours ago
- The Independent
Warnings that police £1.2bn funding shortfall will continue to grow
A projected £1.2 billion shortfall in police funding will continue to grow, leaving forces facing further cuts, police leaders have warned. Key figures in the service in England and Wales painted a bleak picture after the Chancellor outlined plans for an average 2.3% rise in police spending per year. Chairman of the National Police Chiefs' Council Gavin Stephens said: 'It is clear that this is an incredibly challenging outcome for policing. 'In real terms, today's increase in funding will cover little more than annual inflationary pay increases for officers and staff. 'Whilst we await further detail on allocation to individual forces, the amount falls far short of what is required to fund the Government's ambitions and maintain our existing workforce. 'A decade of under-investment has left police forces selling buildings, borrowing money and raising local taxes to maintain what we already have, with forces facing a projected shortfall of £1.2 billion over the next two years, which is now expected to rise. 'This is against a backdrop of increasing crime rates, with new and escalating threats from organised crime and hostile states, and more offenders being managed in the community as a result of an overstretched criminal justice system. 'Cutting crime isn't just about officer numbers, we need specialist skills and people, supported with the right systems and technology, to better protect communities. 'We fully support the Government's drive to cut crime and grow officer numbers, but for these to succeed, investment in policing must live up to the ambition.' Speaking to journalists on Wednesday afternoon, Norfolk Chief Constable Paul Sanford said police forces have increasingly relied on borrowing money to balance the books, and the cost of debt is expected to go up by 49% in the next three years. The 2.3% announced by the Government covers last year, which includes national insurance contributions and pay awards already granted, leaving a 1.7% increase in funding for this spending review period, he said. It will be decided in December how the money will be shared between the 43 forces in England and Wales, and the pay settlement to be given to officers is also not yet known. Mr Sanford, who is head of the finance co-ordination committee of the National Police Chiefs Council, said he is concerned that some forces have underestimated the cost of pay for the coming year. He added: 'It will be incredibly difficult for the commitment to deliver the additional 13,000 neighbourhood police officers to be delivered within this funding envelope.' Acting national chairwoman of the Police Federation, Tiff Lynch, accused the Chancellor of failing to listen to police officers or the home secretary in the lead up to the review. She said: 'This spending review should have been a turning point after 15 years of austerity that has left policing, and police officers, broken. 'Instead, the cuts will continue and it's the public who will pay the price. 'As rank-and-file officers kit up for night duty this evening, they'll do so knowing exactly where they stand in the Government's priorities. 'It is beyond insulting for cabinet ministers to call on police to 'do their bit' when officers are overworked, underpaid, and under threat like never before. 'They are facing blades and bricks, managing mental health crises while battling to protect their own, and carrying the weight of trauma and financial stress home with them every day.' The Police Federation claims that police pay has fallen by more than 20% in real terms since 2010, while the number of crimes allocated to each officer has risen by a third. 'We will lose 10,000 experienced officers a year to resignation by the end of this spending review period, driven out by poor pay and unacceptable working conditions,' she added. 'This Chancellor hasn't listened to police officers. She hasn't listened to the home secretary. She hasn't listened to the public's concerns about community safety. 'We await the Government's decision on police pay in the coming weeks. 'But with this spending review, the signs are deeply worrying; the consequences will be even more so. And those consequences sit squarely on the shoulders of the Chancellor and the prime minister.' Roger Hirst and Joy Allen, who are joint leads for funding for the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners, said the funding settlement is not enough to meet government targets to reduce crime and called for changes to the current formula used to decide how much each force gets. Mr Hirst said there is no funding 'to meet the challenges of evolving threats and the need to invest in more officers and new technologies', and in some areas forces will have to rely on council tax hikes to maintain officer numbers. Ms Allen said: 'With a lack of capital investment, many forces are still working from ageing buildings, managing vehicle fleets beyond their operational life and relying on outdated digital infrastructure that no longer meets the demands of modern policing. 'While the ringfenced funding for neighbourhood policing is welcome, the broader settlement does not yet go far enough to support delivery of the Government's ambitious policing priorities – halving knife crime, tackling violence against women and girls, and embedding the neighbourhood policing guarantee.'
