Durdle Door incidents spark appeal over travel
ACOUNCIL leader has called for stricter travel rules following the weekend’s chaotic beach scenes in Dorset which saw three people seriously injured after jumping off cliffs into the sea.
Councillor Vikki Slade, the leader of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council, has written to local MPs and the chief constable of Dorset Police after widespread scenes of irresponsible behaviour witnessed across the area’s beaches, including at the limestone arch of Durdle Door.
She said she had witnessed firsthand incidents of people failing to adhere to social distancing rules, illegal parking, widespread barbecues and staff facing abuse when going about their work.
Ms Slade said many of the visitors to the beaches were people who had travelled from outside of the county.
“Three weeks ago, following the Prime Minister’s announcement that people could travel wherever they liked as long as they did not stay out overnight, we discussed the possibility of limiting travel distance,” she said.
“We were told clearly that this was not possible.
“We have asked the police for extra support in enforcing social distancing and we have been told that we are policed by consent and that this is not practical, and that the capacity of the police makes it impossible to achieve.
“We saw the most awful scenes in Durdle Door with the arrival of two helicopters to deal with the stupidity of people jumping from the top of cliffs, cheered and clapped by thousands of beachgoers.
“We saw the kettling of people to give space to the helicopters and the closely packed paths as people were told to leave.
“We have seen crowds on our beaches, in large groups clearly not from the same household, we have had council officers spat at, abused and intimidated as they go about their work, and I am asking you all to go back to ministers in Westminster and ask them to put a travel restriction on England, as they have done in Wales and Scotland.
“In those devolved nations you can only travel five miles from home for reasons other than work or risk fines, and I am asking that a similar policy is brought in for England with immediate effect.”
After the three men were seriously injured in Saturday’s incident after jumping from the top of the Durdle Door arch, the popular beauty spot and nearby Lulworth Cove were closed.
But on Sunday scores of people defied attempts to close the beach and so-called tombstoners could even be seen jumping from the 200ft high sea arch.
Meanwhile, a paddleboarder who saved a man who had jumped into the sea said he thought he was going to drown in the rescue.
Mike Wiley, 31, from Southampton, found the man unconscious on the seabed after he had tombstoned from Durdle Door arch.
“He hit the water so hard he didn’t even come up to the surface, he went straight down,” Mr Wiley told the BBC. “When I got to him he was just laid on some seaweed and I grabbed his hand and kept swimming to the surface.
“I thought I was going to let go of him as I didn’t think I’d make it to the surface myself. I swum through the pain and the fact I thought I was going to drown – dragging a body through the water was hard.”
Durdle Door and Lulworth Cove are part of the Lulworth Estate, which is owned by the Weld family.
Car parks on the estate remained open yesterday and charges applied for parking there.
A spokesman for The Lulworth Estate said: “The opening of the car parks at Lulworth did not attract visitors, these were opened to relieve the pressure on the local road network and local community, although the publicity surrounding the opening of the car parks undoubtedly added to the number of visitors.
“The Lulworth Estate is not responsible for the government policies regarding Covid-19 or the legal access to public highway and public areas; we can only respond to the numbers that arrive and our staff have worked hard to manage this influx and clear up after them with little positive assistance or input from local authorities.
“The Lulworth Estate staffs all sites and where possible attempts to manage access, although we are physically and legally unable to prevent visitors access the beaches or climbing the cliffs; we advise of the dangers of both including the dangers of Covid-19 and social distancing is not always possible.
“The Lulworth Estate has no means of preventing people from travelling to Lulworth and Durdle
Door, which everyone has been permitted to do since Wednesday, May 13.
“It’s clear the restriction on travelling should have been limited to local journeys only which would not have resulted in the huge pressures being suddenly foisted on local road networks and on sites such as Lulworth Cove and Durdle Door.
“Unrestricted travel has undoubtedly led to the unacceptable influx of visitors, despite the enormously damaging effects of restrictions on the economy and on jobs.”
Commenting on the tombstoning incidents, South Dorset MP Richard Drax said: “I have heard what’s happened and I am desperately sorry but to jump off the shelf at Durdle Door is a very stupid thing to do.
“I have seen and heard of people jumping from Durdle Door my whole life; there’s nothing new about it. You do wonder how people can be so stupid.
“We are a free country in which millions of people died to give us the freedom to make choices, but the government can’t micromanage everything people do.
“People have to be responsible and consider what’s in their and their families’ best interests.”
People on social media have been calling on the estate to close its car parks.
Mr Drax continued: “I am not going to say anything about a solution at this point. We have got multiple agencies involved. We will meet over the next two to three days to discuss all the issues.”