Drowning is a leading cause of accidental death in the UK and together with our partner agencies, we’re committed to ensuring everyone in Cornwall is equipped with the information they need to stay safe around water.
Most people don't think of the fire service when it comes to water rescue, but it's an important part of our work. While we hope you'll never need them, we have specialist water rescue crews ready to respond to emergencies across Cornwall 24/7.
If you or someone else is in trouble in water call 999 immediately.
For inland water rescue such as a lake or river, ask for the fire service, and for sea water rescue ask for the coastguard.
Drowning statistics in Cornwall
Drowning accounts for more accidental fatalities in the UK annually than fire deaths in the home or cycling deaths on the road.
In 2017, Cornwall had the highest number of accidental and natural cause water related deaths in England with 10 recorded. Analysis shows that just over a third of people who have died from accidental water related deaths in Cornwall were residents and a fifth were visitors.
Cornwall Fire and Rescue Service supports the Devon and Cornwall Police led awareness campaign Coast Safe to reduce tragedies on our coastlines. The Twitter account #CoastSafe aims to ensure that you, a family member or friend don’t become one of this year’s statistics.
Known facts
- Over half of all drowning deaths are among those aged under 25 years.
- Drowning is one of the leading causes of death for people aged 1-24 years.
- Males are twice as likely to drown as females.
Audio transcript of the above video: Everyone who falls into cold water has the same instinct to swim hard but cold water shock can make them gasp uncontrollably and breathe in water then they drown. But if they just float until the cold water shock has passed then they will have a far better chance at staying alive.
Have a look at the advice below to stay safe around water.
- Cold water shock – low water temperature can numb limbs and render the strongest swimmer helpless in minutes. 2/3 of accidental drowning involve strong swimmers.
- Sub surface hazards. There may be debris and rubbish beneath the surface or missing drain covers during floods.
- Poster: Do you know what lies beneath?
- Currents or water conditions – water does not need to be moving very fast to sweep you off your feet and there may be strong currents even in still water.
- Alcohol consumption – alcohol severely affects your hazard perception, co-ordination and resistance to the cold.
- Swimming Competency – don’t assume because you can swim in a pool that you can deal with the challenges and temperatures of open water swimming.
- Access - There may be steep, rocky and slippery access routes to and from fishing and swimming sites, and river banks can be eroded very quickly when rivers are running high.