A county councillor has called for increased safety measures on the River Tyne at Prudhoe in Northumberland after a 13-year-old boy tragically died after getting into difficulty.
Teenager Robert Hattersley, from Crawcrook, died following an incident in the river near Prudhoe and Ovingham at around 4.15pm on Sunday.
Now councillor Angie Scott, who represents Prudhoe North, says more needs to be done to educate the public about the danger of the stretch of river - revealing that she herself had to be pulled from the same part of the Tyne when she was 14.
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Coun Scott said: "It is absolutely terrible what has happened. It is heartbreaking. When I was younger I was in the river close to the Ovingham Bridge with some friends. We were going down the rapids and I just got swept away.
"I was a really good swimmer, but I just couldn't get out. I just had to shout and shout and one of my friends was able to get me out.
"I never went in that river again and I would go mad with my children if I ever knew they had swam there. I couldn't sleep last night because I could remember how frightened I was - but I was lucky."
Coun Scott also said that another young boy had to be pulled from the river by a dog walker, and urged people not to go in to swim, even if tempted by the current heatwave.
She said: "It is not a safe place to go in and people must take notice of these tragic incidents. It looks a lovely part of the Tyne but it is so dangerous.
"I would like to get the emergency services out and have a really good conversation with our young people. I don't want anybody to think that river is safe, because it is not.
"The safety equipment was updated last year after a lad had to be pulled out, but have we got enough? I will be looking at the safety measures and we need more, clear signage."
Northumberland Fire and Rescue Service have issued advice reminding people not to go in the water. It included:
- Supervise your children
- Don't drink alcohol and go in the water
- Stay away from the edge of banks as they can be slippy
- Keep your dog on the lead
A spokeswoman for the fire service added: "The water might look cooling - but it has hidden dangers, strong undercurrents, rubbish and it's much colder and few inches below the surface."
Robert's family have today issued a statement paying tribute to the "kind and loving" schoolboy.
Emergency services were deployed to the area and searches for him were carried out by a number of organisations including police, Tyne & Wear Fire & Rescue Service, Northumberland Fire & Rescue Service, HM Coastguard and Mountain Rescue.
Officers from Northumbria Police are continuing to support the family and have asked that their privacy is respected at this time. There is not believed to have been any third party involvement and a report will be made for the coroner.
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