JORDAN LEE ROBERTS · Prevention of Future Deaths report

On 10th September 2014 I commenced an investigation into the death of JORDAN LEE ROBERTS, aged 17 years. The investigation concluded at the end of the inquest on 3rd February 2015. The conclusion of the inquest was “Accidental Death”.

The deceased, his brother and a close family friend had been playing in the River Wear near Finchale Abbey on Monday the 8th of September 2014. They had spent much of the day playing in the river without incident. The river level was quite low, it was good weather and most of the time they had been walking in the river without difficulty in water that was not very deep. On the afternoon one of the three noticed he was in deeper water, about chest height, and began swimming and when he turned round he saw the two brothers in the river bobbing up and down in and under the water and at first thought they were playing. When neither re-appeared above the surface he realised there was something amiss, jumped back into the river and swam and was able to recover one of the brothers to the river bank and following CPR this person revived. The rescuer went back into the water but was unable to find and therefore unable to retrieve the other brother who was subsequently found in the river in over 2 meters of water by emergency services the next day. The rescuer had not seen any warning signs along the bank side. The local water bailiff was able to confirm that there was one warning sign affixed quite high up to a tree on the Finchale Abbey bank side of the river near to a picnic area warning of deep and dangerous water. The water bailiff did not believe that there were any warning signs on the other bank side, owned by Durham County Council. Evidence was given that there are in fact three small signs on the Durham County Council bank side which the water bailiff despite knowing the area well did not know they existed. They are approximately 4 inches square bearing words “Danger do not enter water” giving an emergency number and a County Council information telephone number. The water bailiff confirmed that he knew of and he believed others knew of a much deeper area of water at the place where this incident took place where the water depth falls away sharply from being a few feet in depth to a depth of 4 meters or more. The drop is sudden. The area is known as the bombhole. The rescuer confirmed that even though he had played in the river in that area since childhood he was unaware of this particular deep area. There are no warning signs near to the site of the incident. There are no warning signs particularly highlighting the risk and dangers posed by deep water in the area.

(1) The depth of the water in the River Wear which the three young men waded through is not particularly deep or particularly hazardous except where there is this particularly deep pool where the dangers are also compounded by strong currents. There is one warning sign on the Finchale Abbey side of the river but people walking down the well established river path on the County Council river bank side would be unaware of this sign and the three small square warning signs that are in place seem inadequate and not fit for purpose particularly bearing in mind that the water bailiff himself was unaware of their existence. Consideration therefore should be given to the question of the erection of appropriate warning signs on both sides of the River Wear in this area particularly highlighting known dangers of this particularly deep expanse of water.