Tombstoning warnings ignored as temperatures soar

It wasn’t just the scorching temperatures and long tailbacks on roads to the coast.

It was the sight of reckless youngsters ignoring safety warnings and leaping off the Redbridge Causeway into the River Test.

The emergency services have repeatedly warned youngsters not to endanger their lives by jumping into the water 25ft below.

The potentially lethal practice, known as tombstoning, has resulted in teenagers across the country being paralysed after jumping into shallow water or hitting submerged objects.

One person who knows more than anyone how dangerous it can be is Carol Biddlecombe, of Blackfield.

In March 2000 her son Nick, then aged 17, jumped into the sea at Lepe and shattered three vertebra after hitting a submerged object.

Mrs Biddlecombe said: “My son is now paralysed from the shoulders down and confined to a wheelchair.

It’s a terrible price to pay for one moment when he listened to two friends encouraging him to jump.

“It fills me with horror when I see reports of more people doing this.”

Last month Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service carried out a water rescue exercise to highlight the dangers of tombstoning.

Mickey Smither, station manager at Redbridge Fire Station, said: “Tombstoning may seem like harmless fun in the hot weather but this is a very dangerous activity.”