Beyond belief !
SCORES of people yesterday defied attempts to close the beach at Durdle Door in Dorset after three people were seriously injured jumping off cliffs into the sea there on Saturday.
So-called tombstoners could even be seen jumping from the 200ft high sea arch again yesterday despite the dangers.
Police, the ambulance service, the coastguard and the RNLI attended the beauty spot after Saturday’s incidents.
Three air ambulances landed at the scene and crowds of people were evacuated from the beach and surrounding cliff area.
One of the rescue helicopters had to fly from St Athan in South Wales to the Dorset coast.
That evening, Dorset council said Durdle Door and nearby Lulworth Cove would be closed “until further notice”.
Dorset Police also tweeted: “Durdle Door and Lulworth Cove remain closed today along with approach roads to the area.
“Please do not travel as you will be turned away.”
But despite this, images taken yesterday showed people on the beach and even jumping into the sea.
Lulworth Coastguard Rescue Team (CRT) posted on Facebook that people had been jumping from the arch “encouraged by the crowds on the beach” on Saturday.
As well as the three injured men, police had to deal with alcoholfuelled minor scuffles.
A woman also suffered a suspected broken ankle on Saturday and there was a small but out-of-control fire from a BBQ.
“Upsetting scenes like we and many others witnessed yesterday illustrate how very dangerous tombstoning is. We couldn’t discourage it enough,” the CRT said.
Dorset Council and Dorset Police also took action yesterday to close roads heading to other beaches, such as West Bexington.
Shocking photographs had emerged on Saturday afternoon of huge crowds at Durdle Door.
They had to be corralled into a small portion of the beach to allow helicopters to land.
Then there was a rush up the narrow path from the beach to nearby car parks on the Lulworth Estate.
On Saturday, a post on Poole Police’s Facebook page said the “critical incident” had involved people jumping from the arch of Durdle Door into the sea.
“The arch of Durdle Door is approximately 200 feet in height. Hitting water from that height, roughly 77mph, can be critical,” it said.
“This is further compounded by tides, currents and altering depth of the sea bed. It is NOT an appropriate location for this type of activity.”
Yesterday, Jonathan Mair, Dorset Council’s corporate director, and duty Gold Officer said: “Following multiple serious incidents at Durdle Door yesterday involving the emergency services, we have taken the decision to keep the roads to Lulworth and Durdle Door closed today on safety grounds.
“We have also just made the decision to close the road to West Bexington in West Dorset following health and safety issues there yesterday.
“We would ask people to please think twice before visiting Dorset’s beaches as they are becoming overcrowded and maintaining social distancing is becoming difficult.”