Fencing call after maninjured in harbour fall

A COUNCIL is facing calls to install safety fencing around Bridlington harbour after a pensioner was badly hurt in a 25ft fall.

The man, believed to be in his late 60s, suffered head, chest and abdominal injuries when he fell onto the mud below after trying to sit down on the harbour wall.

A rescue helicopter from RAF Leconfield and the Yorkshire Air Ambulance were dispatched to the scene but neither was able to land.

It took rescuers including paramedics, firefighters and Bridlington Coastguard an hour to get the man to road level, where he was taken by air ambulance to Hull Royal Infirmary.

Yorkshire Ambulance Service described his injuries as “fairly serious”.

Barry Bevitt, 70, who saw the accident and called 999, said lives were being put at risk by the lack of fencing along the harbour.

Mr Bevitt, a retired tanker driver from Pontefract, said: “It appeared to me that he was trying to sit down. He fell with quite a flop and all the seagulls took off. When he came round I was sat talking to him and he said his name was Fred.

“It took emergency services over an hour to retrieve the poor man and get him to a waiting ambulance, a difficult job for all the services involved.

“My point is, is there a problem putting up a barrier to stop this happening again before someone young or old loses their life?

“I am sure this has happened before and will surely happen again. All the fish and chip shops are along that wall and there are a lot of small animals and kids about.”

A spokesman for East Riding Council said: “We are aware of this incident. This is a working harbour and as such only certain types of barrier are appropriate.

“The beam in question is such a barrier, and signage around the area makes it clear that these are not appropriate locations to sit.”