A woman who lost her four-year-old nephew when he drowned after falling from Burnham-On-Sea’s jetty has issued a heartfelt plea for people not to put their family in danger by walking to the end of the structure.
Lisa Woodward’s nephew Dylan died after falling into the sea from the jetty in August 2012, with a four-day search ending when a member of the public discovered his body.
Her new warning comes after Burnham-On-Sea.com reported here that three incidents have taken place in recent weeks where children had fallen into the sea at the end of the jetty.
Last weekend, a photographer videoed the moment a boy was saved from water next to Burnham jetty. It prompted Sedgemoor District Council to reintroduce a jetty warden earlier than originally planned.
After hearing about the rescues, Lisa posted a heartfelt plea on social media and urged people to share her warning as widely as possible to avoid further incidents.
“Please stay safe, stay alive and stay away from the jetty,” she says.
In her post, Lisa relived how the tragedy unfolded eight years ago in order to outline the seriousness of her warning.
“On Sunday August 19, 2012, my nephew Dylan wanted to go up to the jetty so his mummy, daddy, sisters and cousin all went up for a early evening walk. Little did they know that they would not come back as a family of five.”
“Tragedy struck at 5.56pm. Dylan was jumping in the water, having fun and laughing with his family and in a split second he jumped and fell into the sea. His mum and dad tried to save him by risking their own lives but to no avail. He was gone. Swept out to sea.”
Lisa also shared her memories of the “hell” in the days that followed the tragedy, with local rescue services including Coastguards, the RNLI and BARB, plus underwater search teams and even members of the public assisting with the search.
She adds: “They spent time away from their own families to look for a little boy who we all knew was no longer alive. Just so we could have him back.”
“Those four days were hell. I will never forget the phone call from my mum. 104 missed calls and me ringing her back up to hear her crying and having to get from Exeter to Burnham to support my family.”
“Driving up there thinking it wasn’t happening to us. Ringing up my nan and my cousin to tell them what had happened. Arriving and walking to the seafront to see the seafront taped off.”
“Being told that the search was being scaled back, and thinking that he would be lost forever. Not knowing what to say in case you said the wrong thing. Not thinking straight. It was hard.”
After four days, on August 23rd, Dylan’s body was discovered having washed up not far from the jetty.
Lisa said she would “never forgive herself” for not taking photos of him the last time she saw him, and that the tragedy has continued to have a massive effect on her life.
She said: “Dylan’s body had been found by a passerby (who now has to live with the memory of how he found Dylan). We were told that the way he had been found it was as if he was asleep curled up in a ball, not even a mile from where he fell.”
“Nearly eight years later, I will never ever forget the last word I said to my gorgeous nephew, which was not ‘I love you’ but if I knew it would be the last time I’d talk to him I could have said those 3 words. I will never forgive myself for not taking pictures when I saw him the day before. I beat myself up with the what if’s.”
“I will never forget having to go to his funeral and saying my goodbyes. I will never be able to enjoy time at the beach with my family properly as I am constantly worried about them getting into difficulties. I have only paddled twice with them in the sea so I let their dad go in with them. Depression has played a massive factor in my life since and in the lives of Dylan’s family.”
A plaque was placed at the top of the jetty in memory of Dylan and Lisa said she wanted to tell her story to warn people about the dangers posed by the jetty.
She is urging people to take on board her experience and to take the warnings about the jetty seriously.
“So what is it going to take for people to realise that the jetty in Burnham-On-Sea is not a safe place to play on? Do you want to have to go through what our families are going through?”
“If not then please read the signs and stay away from the edge and be very cautious of the tide times. We have a plaque up there to remember Dylan. Please don’t let there be another plaque next to his. Please stay safe, stay alive and stay away from the jetty.”
