Fire service warns of water dangers as sunny weather continues
As the warm sunny weather continues and lockdown restrictions are eased, one of Cumbria’s emergency services are warning people to be careful when in or around water.
Each year Cumbria Fire and Rescue Service say they are called to around 50 water related rescues, and with the weekend shaping up to be a scorcher, they are worried there will be a rise in incidents.
Mike Clusker, the station manager, said: "This time of year when we get warm sunny spells we tend to get a little increase in calls to rescues from water.
"It’s about common sense. Only swim in areas that you’re familiar with, never swim alone, definitely don’t enter the water if you’re under the influence of alcohol or any other substances.
"If you’re out with your family, never let the little ones out of sight because things can go downhill very, very quickly.”
Often when an emergency call is made it can result in multiple emergency services responding. The fire service are one of those called upon, especially when it happens inland, and regularly train for such situations.
Tom Harding, the watch manager, said: “We’d normally have up to 4 fire engines dealing with this kind of incident.
"We can all go for a paddle, we’ve all done it before, but it’s about knowing your limits.”