SEASIDE HORROR
Frantic group who found mum trapped head-first in sea rocks ‘told by 999 operator NOT to rescue her before she drowned’
A DESPERATE group who found a mum trapped head-first in sea rocks were told by a 999 operator not to rescue her before she drowned, an inquest heard.
Saffron Cole-Nottage was walking with her dog and daughter on a path at the base of the sea wall in Lowestoft, Suffolk, when the horror unfolded.
An inquest heard how one witness, Ian Jones, was “shocked to see two legs sticking out the water and a young girl stood nearby just screaming”.
Saffron’s feet were missing her trainers as they had apparently been removed by her daughter, who had been trying to pull her out.
Mr Jones and another man attempted to pull Saffron free but they “just couldn’t pull her with enough force to free her”.
Suffolk Coroner’s Court was told there was a “muddled response” when the initial 999 call was made as the controller recorded she was not near the water.
This meant emergency crews were delayed and the operator, who did not realise the tide was rising, even urged passers-by to stop trying to free Saffron.
The court heard an initial 999 call was made to the East of England Ambulance Service at 7.52pm but fire crews did not arrive until 8.22pm.
By the time emergency crews managed to free her, Saffron was tragically declared dead at the scene.
The court heard the delay was due to the controller’s computer programme requiring them to ask the caller specific questions, which blocked them getting an overview of the incident.
A transcript of the call revealed the caller had asked for the ambulance service because a woman “had fallen off the pier and was trapped in between rocks and was unable to get out.”
The controller, Daniel Joy, categorised the call at 7.56pm as being an “entrapment”, leading to an “entrapment protocol” being enacted.
He did not initially record she needed a specialist rescue and inadvertently selected a different option, although it was still recorded as a most serious Category One call, it was said.
East of England Ambulance Service dispatcher Brannon Murrell assigned a crew from Beccles, around a ten mile drive away, to be sent at 7.57pm, and HM Coastguard were informed one minute later.
Mr Joy asked if the woman’s head was in the water, and the caller replied that she was jammed in the rocks “further at the side” before adding: “This is really serious”.
The caller repeated: “She is not near the side. She is further away. We are trying to pull her up… She is like really screaming and everything… Her whole body is trapped.”
At this stage, Mr Joy urged the caller to tell people at the scene not to “attempt to rescue her”, and “not to move her”, saying: “Stay on the line, I’ll tell you what to do.
“Wait for the ambulance crew to arrive and tell her not to move”.
But at 7.59pm, the incident was re-categorised it as a potential “drowning” incident after the caller reported that Saffron’s head was going under the water and stated: “She is maybe going to drown soon”
The move led to a rapid response ambulance vehicle which was returned from a call out to Hopton near Great Yarmouth, being sent to the scene as it would get there quicker.
But at eight minutes and 45 seconds into the call, the caller reported that Saffron was “now under the water and has passed out”.
They added just over 30 seconds later: “She is unresponsive”.
The caller then asked: “How long is it going to be because I think she is going to die?… We don’t know if she is ging to drown because her body is fully unresponsive… You can’t see her face.”
Twelve minutes into the call at 8.04pm, the caller said: “Can they come quickly as I think she has died”.
The fire service was contacted by the ambulance service at the same time.
Six minutes later, the caller said “She is completely submerged”, before adding at 8.10pm: “The ambulance is here. Do you want me to hang up?”
The inquest heard how firefighters eventually arrived on the promenade at 8.22pm, and were at Saffron’s side four minutes later.
She was removed from the rocks at 8.32pm – nearly an hour after she first became trapped.
An East Anglian Air Ambulance helicopter which had flown from Norwich landed at the scene at 8.35pm.
It previously emerged the mum was walking along a path under the town’s Esplanade promenade, despite signs telling people to keep away from the area.
Locals likened the path to an “ice rink” as it was so slippery due to it being covered in algae.
The inquest heard she had been out at the Hatfield Hotel in Lowestoft “for a Sunday roast and a few drinks” before the tragedy.
She later walked to a pub near Claremont Pier but her partner, Mike Wheeler, said “she wasn’t slurring her words and was acting normally”.
At around 7pm, Saffron took their dog for a walk with their daughter and slipped 45 minutes later.
Pathologist Raj Logasundarum said a level of 271 milligrammes of alcohol per 100ml of blood was recorded – with the legal limit being 80.
The pathologist said this “would have significantly impaired her cognitive abilities”.
He recorded her medical cause of death as drowning.
In a pen portrait, read by barrister Saba Naqshbandi KC, Ms Cole-Nottage’s family described her as “truly one of a kind”.
They said she was “bubbly, fun and full of life” and “she had the rare ability to light up any room”.
The inquest, due to last two weeks, continues.
Source: https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/39013015/mum-died-trapped-sea-rocks-tide-delay/
