Pupils from two Pembrokeshire secondary schools were shown the dangers of ‘tombstoning’ in a safety exercise staged at Tenby harbour last week.

‘Tombstoning’ is the practice of jumping into water from great heights.

It gets its name from the straight, vertical posture that participants adopt.

It is considered dangerous because of the risk of hitting water from a height and that posed by underwater hazards such as rocks and shallow water.

The ‘Breakwater’ event in Tenby last Friday was designed in response to a growing problem of young people ‘tombstoning’ in the resort’s harbour.

A number of agencies including Pembrokeshire Youth Services; Tenby Harbourmaster’s office; the Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service (MWWFRWS); Dyfed-Powys Police; the RNLI and TYF Adventure, worked together on designing a programme that was engaging and interactive, but conveyed a serious message about the dangers associated with the activity.

Workshops for students from Greenhill and Pembroke schools included watching a virtual reality film - specially produced for the event - showing the dangers from various perspectives, including the views of boatmen using the harbour for work.

Roger Miles, owner skipper of the Seren-y-Mor, was on hand throughout the day to explain the risk participants pose to themselves and others.

“For boat owners when we have to manoeuvre a vessel in and out of the harbour carrying a large crowd of passengers then our focus is on their safety, yet there are kids still choosing to jump into the water off the pier who end up swimming around the boats,” he explained.

“We know that they’re trying to have fun but it causes big concerns for us boat operators.

“Young people may think that boats can stop immediately but they are not like cars.

“The worst scenario is someone could clank their head against the bow of the boat, go under and connect with the propeller and it could make mince meat out of someone.

“It’s only a matter of time before something tragic happens, and everyone would have to live with something like that,” added Roger.

The RNLI hosted a number of rescue simulations to provide a better understanding of their role and illustrate the dangers.

The MWWFRS ran a workshop where they utilised their state-of-the-art drone to search for casualties in and around the water, demonstrating the challenges the Pembrokeshire coastline poses to emergency services attending such incidents.

Jeremy Trew from MWWFRS said: “In the UK drowning is among the leading causes of accidental death. For instance 56 per cent of people who die in water intend to go in but still lose their life.

“The Chief Fire Officers Association have pledged to reduce the number of drownings by half by 2026.”

Tenby Round Table, the local Sailing Club and even local businesses such as a Café run by Clare Miles on the harbour, all helped to make the event a success, providing food, premises, drinks free of charge.

Tenby Harbourmaster, Matt Broadhurst, thanked the students taking part for being so engaging and receptive.

He went on: “The event was not only aimed at educating them but starting a two way conversation, where all the services involved can begin to understand why young people take such risks, and what they can do to prevent serious accidents or injuries.

“Hopefully this will be the start of a dialogue that can potentially stop a serious accident happening” he added

Nick Hudd from Pembrokeshire Youth Services stressed: “This is the beginning of an on-going process where we can hopefully use what we have learnt to continue to develop messages and resources around the dangers posed by jumping into water.

“The event demonstrated, yet again, the tremendous collaborative approach to working in the best interests of young people.”