10:17am Monday 2nd June 2008
Coastguards are again warning of the danger of tombstoning, after two teenagers were swept out into the Haven.
The youths got into trouble on Saturday night. At around 6.20pm coastguards received a 999 call reporting two boys in trouble off Wards Pier, Milford Haven.
The local lads had been with a group of 13-year-olds, cooling off by leaping off the pier into the narrowest part of the entrance to the Pill.
With the tide turning and strong winds, two of the boys were swept out into the Haven.
Angle inshore lifeboat was tasked to the incident together with the port authority pilot boat, Dale coastguard rescue team and Dyfed- Powys Police.
When rescue teams arrived at the scene both boys had left the area. After an exhausting struggle they had managed to get back into the pill and ashore "Tombstoning is a rapidly growing thrill-seeking activity where youths jump from piers, harbour walls and cliffs," said a coastguard spokesman.
"Injuries and even deaths have occurred recently around the UK coast, where people have jumped into potentially shallow water causing serious injuries to neck, spine and legs.
"The recommendation from the coastguard and harbour authorities is: do not participate in this game- it is highly dangerous."
The spokesman went onto say that in some areas, such as harbour walls and docks, local by laws can make tombstoning illegal and tombstoners can be prosecuted.
"To enjoy the thrill of jumping into the sea in safety, there are many coasteering groups giving instruction and supervised activities all around the Pembrokeshire Coast," she continued.
"These groups give safety lessons on how to enter the water, instructions on the safest places to jump and they ensure that every body is fully equipped with helmet, life jacket and other essentials."
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