Beaches should be closed as there are not enough lifeguards on duty, says RNLI after two die off coast at weekend

BEACHES should be closed as there are not enough lifeguards on duty, the RNLI said on Tuesday.

The call came after two people died off the coast at the weekend.

Britain’s 240 beaches are unmanned after patrols were halted in March as lockdown began.

RNLI chief Mark Dowie said: “As a lifesaving charity, the RNLI cannot stop people going to beaches — but the Government can before more lives are lost this summer.

“We’re asking for help to manage an impossible situation.

“We’re asking the public to heed our safety advice and the Government to restrict access to the coast until we have patrols back on beaches.”

RNLI volunteers have patrolled beaches since 2001.

They plan to be at just 70 this summer and will reinstate cover at 15 — including eight in Cornwall — in the coming days.

All four lifeboats on the county’s north coast were launched at the weekend.

A girl, 17, died after an inflatable boat upturned in Wadebridge.

A man pulled from the water in Padstow was dead at the scene.

And in Truro, a swimmer was in a critical condition after getting into difficulties.

Some locals criticised the RNLI for not patrolling.

Oliver Huntsman, of the Bude surf lifesaving club, said: “They have had eight weeks to sort out a plan.”

Steve England, from the surf magazine Carve, said: “Nobody understands why the RNLI won’t act.

“The ex-lifeguards are here — they daren’t stop watching the water.”

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