Western Cleddau riverImage source,MAIB
Image caption,The paddleboarders got into difficulties at a weir outside County Hall
Ch Insp Moll said stand-up paddleboarding was one of the “fastest-growing UK watersports”, with a 300% increase in numbers in recent years and urged participants to be aware of the risks.
“Firstly, wear the right equipment. Always wear a buoyancy aid,” he said.
“In certain conditions, weirs can develop treacherous hydraulic towbacks that can trap and drown you.”. deaths of four people on a paddleboarding trip was “tragic and avoidable”, a report has said.
The organisation of the trip on the River Cleddau on 30 October 2021 was strongly criticised by the Marine Accident Investigation Branch MAIB.
Paul O’Dwyer, 42, Morgan Rogers, 24, Nicola Wheatley, 40, and Andrea Powell, 41, all died as a result of the trip in Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire.
An inquest into their deaths was adjourned to allow investigational
Mr O’Dwyer, from Port Talbot, Ms Rogers, from Merthyr Tydfil, and Ms Wheatley, of Pontarddulais, all died at the scene in Pembrokeshire.
Ms Powell, from Bridgend, died in hospital on 5 November 2021.
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MAIB chief inspector Andy Moll has now said the accident was “tragic and avoidable”.
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