Teen who drowned at Aberavon could not swim, inquest hears
A teenager who died after jumping into the sea from a pier had told friends he "couldn't swim", an inquest has heard.David Ejimofor, 15, died at Aberavon beach, Neath Port Talbot, on 19 June 2023 after joining friends at the beach to celebrate the end of their exams.The hearing, at Swansea's Guildhall, heard from a fisherman who said he heard the boy telling other teenagers he "couldn't swim".His mother, Maria Ejimofor, described her son as "beautiful young boy," who was "bright and sporty".
The fisherman, Ethan Clarke, said he heard the teenagers telling the boy "it would be fine" despite telling them he could not swim.Mr Clarke said the teenager jumped in and he began to panic as soon as he entered the water.He then disappeared under the water at which point the teenagers called for help.Tyler Rowland, an off-duty police officer, was paddleboarding with his partner at the beach.He noticed a group of seven teenagers at the pier about 19:00 BST, with some in the sea.He saw three head back to shore and told the inquest he heard them saying "he's gone".Mr Rowland said one teenager told him his friend had "gone under the water and not come back up".Mr Rowland jumped off his paddleboard and swam over to the group as they frantically looking for David.
The inquest heard he dived down several times before finding David's body.He was helped to carry the body to shore by a nurse called Amy Saunders who was at the beach.In a statement read out in court, she described the efforts to rescue David at the beach as "never experiencing trauma like it".The coroner also read a statement from David's mother, Maria Ejimofor.The court heard he won athletics competitions, was a keen weightlifter and made TikTok tutorials on social media.
His mother's statement said he "achieved so much in his 15 years" and had aspirations to become a doctor.She said he could swim after having lessons as a child but he was not confident in the water.The statement added "he would not have put himself in a dangerous situation" because he was not a risk taker.He often went to the beach because his family lived close by but was always cautious of the sea.The inquest continues.
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