Dorset Police have been urged by an MP to give more details of their investigation into the deaths of two children on Bournemouth beach to avoid discouraging people from visiting the beach. Tobias Ellwood, the MP from Bournemouth East, called on officers to “assure beachgoers that this occurrence is unlikely to happen again” after a 17-year-old boy, from Southampton, Hampshire, and a girl, 12, from High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, were pulled from the water.
Both children died after being taken to hospital, while a further eight were treated by paramedics after the incident.
During the dramatic rescue efforts, two emergency helicopters landed on the sands as medics administered CPR to the two youngsters who were pulled from the water.
Police have launched a criminal investigation into what happened to the children.
Mr Ellwood said: “This is a tragic incident and the police clearly have to do their investigation and that is understood.
“But I would encourage them to give more clarity as to the general details of this tragedy to help assure beachgoers that this occurrence is unlikely to happen again.
“It will place this event into context while reassuring people that it is safe to visit our beautiful beaches.”
But photographs from the beach yesterday showed it packed with tourists the day after the tragedy.
Families arriving at the beach on Thursday spoke of their shock at Wednesday’s events.
One woman, who did not want to be named, said: “It’s such a shame, people just come here to have fun, it’s a real tragedy.”
A man aged in his 40s who was on the water at the time was arrested on suspicion of manslaughter on Wednesday and has since been released under investigation.
For this reason police need to be careful about what information is revealed to the public about the case, despite Mr Ellwood’s request for more clarity.
Antony O’Loughlin, Director Head of Litigation & General Counsel, Setfords, told Express.co.uk: “Investigations such as this are sensitive, and involve careful balancing acts by the police.
“On the one hand, they must address the clear public interest in this story and take steps to stem the inevitable (and sometimes harmful) flow of speculation and frenzy on social media.
“On the other hand, they must carefully guard the more sensitive/personal aspects of the investigation and shield such from public scrutiny, particularly when the investigation is still ongoing.”
He added that being too relaxed about the release of information could potentially jeopardise any future proceedings.
Mr O’Loughlin said: “The police would be exposed to possible civil and even criminal charges by leaking confidential details and at the very least would be subject to severe public criticism (as in the case of Nichola Bulley). The balance can be a tightrope walk, and the consequences of getting it wrong can be servere.”
During Thursday’s press conference, Assistant Chief Constable Farrell urged people not to speculate about what happened.
She said: “As you can imagine, we are at the early stages of our investigation, and we would ask people not to speculate about the circumstances surrounding the incident to both protect our inquiries and out of respect for the victims and their families.
“We are aware of a number of videos circulating on social media and we would urge people to refrain from doing this.
“We know the beach was very busy when the incident occurred. I am today urging anyone who saw what happened or has any information that may assist to please come forward.”
Yesterday a pleasure boat was impounded by police as part of their investigation.
