A holidaymaker has died following an incident on the River Bure yesterday.
Officers were called just after 2pm on Tuesday, September 15 to help the ambulance service and coastguard after a man was injured on the River Bure at Clink Hill, West Caister.
The man in his 20s, from North Yorkshire, was taken to the James Paget Hospital by rescue helicopter yesterday with serious injuries. According to Humber Coastguard he was in a “critical condition”.
He was then transferred to Addenbrooke’s Hospital at Cambridge, where he died late last night.
Officers attended the scene along with the Coastguard, RNLI and the East of England Ambulance Service.
According to Humber Coastguard, they dispatched an inshore lifeboat, Coastguard rescue helicopter and helimed, with teams from both Bacton and Gorleston.
The coastguard said: “The incident itself took place on a hire boat one mile north of Great Yarmouth yacht station at Clink Hill, with police transferring the boat involved to the yacht station after the man had been taken to hospital.
“That’s why there was so much police activity on the quay.”
A couple from Grimsby, who were holidaying on the Broads, said it was chaos on the river for a while with boats berthed two abreast while the river was closed, and more coming in from the south.
The Broads Authority, which had urged river traffic to moor elsewhere while the incident was dealt with, tweeted at just before 3.30pm that the river had reopened.
Its chief executive John Packman offered his condolences.
He said: “Since COVID-19 restrictions were lifted the Broads has been very busy. The majority of people visit without incident, but several accidents this year have had tragic consequences.
“As with any activity on the water there are risks involved. It is important that everyone follows safety advice for using the waterways - especially if they haven’t used a boat before.
“The Broads Authority will work closely with hire companies to get these messages across effectively when customers pick up their boats.”
Today, the scene at Great Yarmouth yacht station and the stretch of river at Clink Hill is deserted.
As of September 16, the hire boat remains moored there - but police cordons have been removed.
The boat, named ‘Acapulco’, belongs to Richardsons. In a statement, they said: “Today is an extremely sad and difficult day at the Marina and our thoughts and condolences are with those affected by this tragic accident.”
Originally, Norfolk Police had said they were liasing with the Marine Accidents Investigations Branch (MAIB) regarding a joint investigation.
However, a spokesperson for the MAIB said they have decided against this.
They said: “We are aware of the tragic accident on the River Bure. Based on the information available, we have decided not to open a full investigation, which we only launch if there is a potential to establish safety learnings.”
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