Beach tragedy: mother and son die as three others fight for life
AMOTHER and her seven-year-old son have died and three other people have been left fighting for their lives after a trip to the beach in Aberdeen ended in tragedy yesterday.
Police Scotland said a 13-year-old boy – thought to be the dead boy’s brother – a 25-year-old woman and 28-year-old man remained in a “serious” condition at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary after they were rescued from the North Sea at the city’s beachfront.
Witnesses said a police car which had raced to the scene sped down a ramp on to Aberdeen beach and straight into the water as officers joined members of the public already trying to save them.
HM Coastguard and Scottish Fire and Rescue also joined the rescue effort and pulled the stricken from the water into ambulances which sped them to hospital under police escort. It emerged soon after that the 37-year-old mother and her son had died. Next of kin were being informed. Chief Inspector Stewart Mackie said: “This is a very tragic incident which has resulted in a woman and a young boy sadly losing their lives. It will undoubtedly bring shock and sadness to the entire city of Aberdeen and further afield.”
Witness Claire Lewtas said: “They were letting the waves come over the top of their heads, there was a woman with them either videoing it or taking pictures. I was going to go down and tell her it was unsafe but I didn’t want to interfere. I only wish I had said something.”
Martin Vicca, owner of the nearby Inversnecky Cafe, said: “The tide was all the way in and at that point it would be reaching six or seven feet up the sea wall. The first police car that arrived tore down the slope and straight into the water. It was not a question of playing around trying to be safe, waiting for lifeboats or whatever.
“Members of the public were helping as much as they could. I spoke to someone who actually helped pull one of the kids from the water. He was asking the man to try and get to his brother.”
Police Scotland Inspector Lorna Ferguson, who co-ordinated the rescue, said: “It appears that all three were possibly playing in the water, a mother and two boys.”
The tragedy comes after a man died and his two-year-old daughter was left in a critical condition when they and three others were swept off rocks at South Fistral beach, Cornwall, on Friday.