Bournemouth Beach evacuated as two young people die and more rescued from sea

A man in his 40s has been arrested on suspicion of manslaughter in relation to the incident


Two young people have died after an incident at Bournemouth Beach yesterday. 

A 12 year old girl and 17 year old boy sustained critical injuries and were transported to hospital where they both later died.

A man in his 40s, who was on the water when police arrived, has been arrested on suspicion of manslaughter, reports The Guardian.

Dorset Police said it received a report at 4.32pm from the ambulance service requesting assistance.

Emergency responders recovered 10 people from the water, including the man who investigators later arrested in connection with the incident.

The ambulance service treated the other eight people who were pulled from the water for non-life threatening injuries.

The coastguard said it had conducted a search to make sure there were no other people missing and was “satisfied there are not”.

Police have launched an investigation into the deaths but have dismissed speculation the two people were hit by a boat.

Josh, a second year Film student at Bournemouth University, witnessed the incident and recounted the events to The Bournemouth Tab: “We were at the beach at 4:45pm and when we arrived we saw a scout helicopter hovering completely stationary in the sky just left of the pier.”

“There were police boats going across the coast and lifeguards on jet skis. We saw the beach cleared as it was was so busy around the pier so the right side of the beach was packed.”

“We then saw an air ambulance helicopter land. They stayed for a good half hour maybe even more which indicated how critical the situation was to us.”

In a statement, Det Ch Supt Neil Corrigan said the beach was “very busy” at the time and asked anyone with information to come forward.

“Our thoughts are with the loved ones of the young people who tragically died and we are doing all we can to support their families.”

“We are at the early stages of our investigation and would ask people not to speculate about the circumstances surrounding the incident,” said DCS Neil Corrigan of Dorset Police.

Investigators asked anyone with information to contact Dorset police at www.dorset.police.uk, or by calling 101 and quoting 55230083818. Anyone wishing to remain anonymous can contact independent charity Crimestoppers online at Crimestoppers-uk.org or by calling Freephone 0800 555 111.

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