The UK’s Health Security Agency warned there could be more incidents to come following two more teenage deaths while open water swimming, as ITV News Midlands Correspondent Stacey Foster reports
A 14-year-old boy has become the 11th person to die after getting into difficulty in open water during the record-breaking May heatwave.
Nine children and two adults have now died in open water incidents over the past week as temperatures soared to above 30C in parts of the country.
In the latest incident, Thames Valley Police confirmed on Thursday that the boy died “after getting into difficulty in the River Thames at Donnington Bridge” on May 27.
He has been named as Baltazar L’Qui, a member of the local Timorese community.
In a statement on behalf of his the family, the Oxford Timorese Community Association said: “We would like to express our deepest condolences to the family of young Baltazar L’Qui during this heartbreaking time.
“This has been a very painful moment not only for the family, but also for the Timorese community in Oxford and across the United Kingdom.”
It added: “This tragedy is also a reminder to all families and communities about the importance of child safety around rivers and open water areas.
“We encourage parents and guardians to continue supervising children closely, especially near rivers and dangerous areas.”
The body of another teenage boy was found on Thursday in Kent after emergency services were called to reports of concerns for a swimmer in the Galley Hill Road area of Swanscombe on Wednesday afternoon.
The boy’s death is not being treated as suspicious at this time, Kent Police said.
So far, those reported to have died in water incidents are:
- Baltazar L’Qui, 14 – River Thames, Donnington Bridge
- Declan Sawyer, 15 – Swanholme Lakes, Lincolnshire
- Reco Puttock, 13 – Leadbeater Dam, West Yorkshire
- Muhammed Secka, 17 – Rother Valley Country Park, South Yorkshire
- An unnamed girl – Kingsbury Water Park, Warwickshire
- Junior Slater, 12 – River Ribble, Lancashire
- A 17-year-old boy – Pickmere Lake, Cheshire
- An unnamed boy – Hawley Lake, Hampshire
- A man in his 60s – Padstow, Cornwall
- A woman, 72 – West Angle Bay beach, Pembrokeshire
- An unnamed boy – Swanscombe, Kent
Other bodies found include 12-year-old Junior Slater, from Clayton-le-Woods, who died in the River Ribble, Lancashire, on Tuesday after getting into difficulty while swimming with friends.
In a statement, his family paid tribute to “our little blue-eyed boy”.
“He will be truly missed. He was the life and soul of our lives,” they said.
His body was retrieved by emergency services at 7.50pm on Tuesday following a large-scale search operation.
Earlier on Wednesday, the body of a teenage boy was recovered from Hawley Lake near Blackwater, in Hampshire, after he was reported missing on Tuesday.
Formal identification has not yet taken place, but Hampshire and Isle of Wight Police say the missing boy’s family have been notified.
It follows police finding another body during the search for a 17-year-old boy last seen at a lake in Cheshire.
A Cheshire Constabulary spokesperson said officers were called to reports of a missing boy last seen in the water at Pickmere Lake, near Northwich.
Dyfed-Powys Police said on Wednesday that a 72-year-old woman had died at West Angle Bay beach, in Pembrokeshire, Wales, after being pulled from the water around 3.15pm on Sunday.
The death is not being treated as suspicious, and next of kin have been made aware, the police said.
Three teenage boys and one girl also died in separate incidents over the Bank Holiday weekend after going into the water in Lincolnshire, South Yorkshire, West Yorkshire, and Warwickshire.
Reco Puttock, 13, was pronounced dead in hospital after he was pulled from a reservoir at Leadbeater Dam, Halifax, just after 3pm on Monday, West Yorkshire Police said.
Hours later, the body of a teenage girl was recovered from Kingsbury Water Park, just south of Tamworth, Staffordshire, on Monday evening following a police search.
Despite the efforts of emergency services, she was pronounced dead at the scene, Atherstone and Coleshill Police said.
The body of Muhammed Secka, 16, was found at Rother Valley Country Park during the early hours of Tuesday morning, following reports of a missing child seen entering the water but not getting out.
The incidents follow the death of 15-year-old Declan Sawyer, whose body was found in a Lincoln lake on Sunday around 10.25pm.
Declan’s father Carl described him as “a funny and outgoing young man who loved fishing and football,” as he called on families to take care of their children when near water.
“Please can all parents, friends and family make their children aware of the dangers surrounding water.”
A man in his 60s also died at Tregirls Beach, near Padstow, on Monday after suffering a cardiac arrest in the sea while trying to help family members who had got into difficulty in the water, Devon and Cornwall Police said.
The relatives were brought to shore by members of the public during the incident.
The deaths have prompted the Royal Life Saving Society (RLSS) to issue a warning, saying it sees a “heightened risk of drowning when air temperatures are higher”.
The Met Office said Tuesday was the UK’s hottest day in May on record, breaking records set the previous two days.
Temperatures provisionally reached 35C at Heathrow and Kew Gardens in London, while Cardiff Bute Park recorded 32.9C.
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