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Harbour safety review to be carried out as petitioners call for changes
A safety review of the Bristol harbour will be carried out after a policeman drowned and petitioners are calling for changes.
However, railings around the entire water’s edge appear unlikely to be installed as these would make the harbour “lose its identity and appeal”.
The head of services for Bristol’s Harbour Authority says railings “diverge from what the harbour stands for” – photo: Alex Seabrook
Last November, police constable Rehaan Akhtar died in the harbour after drowning near the Arnolfini.
In December, a 50-year-old man known only as Matthew also died.
He was last seen walking near the B2B bar around 4am until police recovered his body ten days later from the water.
More than 1,600 petitioners are urging the council to install robust railings along high-risk areas.
Staff at Bristol City Council are now looking at how they can make the water’s edge safer. An update was given to councillors on the harbour committee on Tuesday.
Cliff Brand, head of service for the Bristol Harbour Authority, said: “Unfortunately we had a drowning in November. We’ve responded to the family and we’ve now had a response back from the coroner. We’ve agreed to look at the items which have been raised by the coroner, in so much as increasing safety.
“In light of the unfortunate accident to the PC from Wales, we will continue to do that [safety review] with added vigour. We will look at what we have in place and see if we can enhance that.
“But it’s also worth mentioning that Bristol harbour is quite unique and if we were to go around putting railings all around the harbour, it’s going to lose its identity and appeal.
“I’ve been to harbours before where they’re basically ringfenced with railings and it’s awful.
“Yes, it meets safety needs, but it diverges away from what the harbour stands for, and that’s particularly the case with Bristol. But we will certainly take on board the need to enhance our safety measures, because we need to stop these kinds of accidents from happening.”
Much of the harbour is already surrounded by railings. But these have gaps and are easy to climb over to get closer to the water’s edge.
And several parts of the harbour do not have railings, such as the steps in front of The Cottage Inn.
While there are ladders on the harbour walls, allowing people to climb out, these are not lit up and so are difficult to see at night.
Andrew Brown, chair of the harbour committee and Liberal Democrat councillor for Hengrove and Whitchurch Park, added: “I think the committee will join me in sending commiserations to the families of those who have recently died within the harbour. It’s a personal tragedy for the families, but also tragedies for the city as well when these things happen in our harbour.
“We will be working through with officers to see what lessons can be learned and to see what may or may not be done to improve safety within the harbour.”
Nine years ago Avon and Somerset Police dismissed speculation that a “Bristol pusher” was behind the spate of deaths of young men who were found in the harbour. Another city which suffers from several drownings is Amsterdam, where the bodies of young men are often found with their flies open. Experts say they likely fall into the water while drunkenly urinating.
A petition to make the harbour safer is gathering steam.
Started by Emma Miller, the petition calls for immediate action and says the current safety measures are inadequate. As well as more robust railings, CCTV cameras could “deter risky behaviour and provide crucial footage in emergencies”.
Main photo: Susie Long
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