After a man died in Wiltshire river, an ambulance worker who attended the scene is calling for a ban on unsupervised wild swimming.
Becky Daykin, an emergency care assistant for South Western Ambulance Service, has launched a petition urging Wiltshire Council to introduce new safety regulations for local rivers.
It follows the tragic death of a man in the River Avon at in Bradford on Avon – which the medic responded to – and two similar deaths just over the county border. All three incidents happened over a period of two weeks, with most recent on Saturday evening (12 July).
She said: “In my role as an emergency care assistant, I have been firsthand witness to the heart-wrenching consequences of unsupervised deep river swimming.
“A recent tragedy in one of our local towns saw a life lost, where no emergency life-saving equipment was available nearby.
“This is not an isolated incident – in just the past three weeks, three people have died in our rivers, and these fatalities continue to rise.”
Ms Daykin is calling for a ban on unsupervised swimming in rivers where the water is deeper than one metre, arguing that trained lifeguards could prevent deaths by providing immediate assistance and alerting emergency services.
She added: “We must prioritise the safety of our community and prevent future tragedies that not only claim lives but devastate families.
“Although this may require an initial investment in training and staffing, the potential to save lives is invaluable.”
Wiltshire Council has responded, expressing sympathy for those affected by the recent deaths but confirming it would not be able to enforce a ban on unsupervised river swimming.
Cllr Mel Jacob, Cabinet Member for Communities, said: “We are deeply saddened to hear about the recent deaths due to drowning in Wiltshire rivers.
“Local authorities do not have the power to ban unsupervised swimming in rivers where the water depth exceeds one metre; nor would we be able to enforce it.
“We always encourage people to swim safely and to follow the Royal Life Saving Society UK and Swim Secure guidance when swimming, and consider things such as the water temperature, water depth, any currents and their own swimming ability.
“We want to work with the community in any way that we can to make people aware of the dangers of swimming in rivers and will be contacting schools to ask them to inform pupils about these dangers before the schools break up and sharing safety tips on our website.”
You can find and support the petition on Change.org.
