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The body of a 14-year-old boy was recovered from the River Thames near Donnington Bridge, Oxford, at around 5.30pm on Wednesday. Thames Valley Police confirmed the death is being treated as “unexplained but not suspicious,” marking the 11th water-related death during the recent heatwave in the UK.
Thames Valley Police have confirmed that the investigation into the boy’s death is ongoing, but it is currently classified as ‘unexplained but not suspicious’. The National Water Safety Forum indicated that the spike in water-related fatalities during the ongoing heatwave may reflect a broader trend, as hot weather typically correlates with increased drownings.
Thames Valley Police are treating the death of the 14-year-old boy found in the River Thames as “unexplained but not suspicious,” with his family informed of the situation. In response to the recent spate of water-related fatalities, the Royal Life Saving Society has issued a safety warning, advising swimmers to be cautious of cold water shock despite the warm weather.
What remains unclear — It is not clear how many additional incidents may occur as the heatwave continues.
Boy, 14, found dead in River Thames amid rise in water-related fatalities
The body of a 14-year-old boy has been found in the River Thames.
Emergency services were called to an area of the river near Donnington Bridge, Oxford, at around 5.30pm on Wednesday.
Thames Valley Police said the boy’s death was being treated as ‘unexplained but not suspicious’ and that his family had been informed.
This marks the 11th water-related death since the UK was plunged into a record-breaking heatwave late last week, nine of whom were young people.
Declan Sawyer, 15, was the first teenager to be found dead when his body was recovered from Swanholme Lakes in Lincoln on Sunday.
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That same day, a 72-year-old woman was pulled from the water at West Angle Bay beach in Pembrokeshire, Wales.
Abbie Carmody-Pepper, 15, was pulled from the water at Burrow Beach in County Dublin.
On Bank Holiday Monday, a boy, named locally as 13-year-old Reco Puttock, died after being pulled from the Leadbeater Dam in Halifax, West Yorkshire.
Lillianna Tomlinson, believed to be 16, was pulled from the water in Kingsbury Water Park, Warwickshire.
A teenage boy was also pulled from a lake in Rother Valley Country Park in Rotherham, South Yorkshire.
Phil Crow, 68, died trying to save his wife and granddaughter after they were swept out to sea in Cornwall.
The youngest victim was 12-year-old Junior Slater, whose body was pulled from the River Ribble on Tuesday after he ‘got into difficulty’ in the water.
On Wednesday, Cheshire Police found a body in Pickmere Lake while searching for a 17-year-old boy who went missing while swimming.
The body of another teenage boy was also recovered at Hawley Lake near Farnborough.
It comes as the UK continues to endure a record-breaking heatwave.
A spokesperson for the National Water Safety Forum (NWSF) said it is too early to say whether the number of water-related deaths during this heatwave is ‘unusual’.
But the NWSF said hot weather often correlates with an increase in accidental drownings.
The spate of deaths has prompted the Royal Life Saving Society (RLSS) to issue a water safety warning, urging swimmers to be aware that water temperatures remain cold even in extreme heat.
They said cold water shock can make swimming and exiting the water harder.