Dad 'fell headfirst in water' and died after falling behind in family activity
A dad of two died in front of his sons after he "fell head first" in the sea as he struggled to keep pace during a swimming and climbing activity, an inquest has heard.
Iain Farrell, 49, was participating in the coasteering excursion when the guide noticed he was "falling behind" in the session, which was run by Land & Wave at Hedbury Quarry, near Swanage in Dorset. The inquest heard how the father, from Dorney, was pulled unconscious from the water after he was unable to climb out of the "rocky shoreline" on May 26, 2019.
Coroner Brendan Allen said that after a “risk acknowledgement” briefing, the participants were split into three groups, with Mr Farrell and his sons, aged 13 and 15, being led by guide Charles Ridley.
Mr Ridley had completed his training and been issued with a certificate in coasteering leading in July 2016 and was considered an "experienced coasteering guide", the coroner said. Mr Ridley, who was equipped with a VHF radio, throw-line and knife, carried out a “dynamic risk assessment” of each person in the group of nine, as he asked them to enter the water and swim out around 10 metres.
The activity was run by Land & Wave (RichardCrease/BNPS)The coroner described how he taught the group to perform a “safety raft”, also referred to as a “circle of love”, which involved the participants forming a circle in the water by holding on to the next person’s buoyancy aid straps.
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Mr Allen said: “It became apparent quite quickly that Iain was falling behind the group. Mr Ridley swam with Iain, talking to him and encouraging him. He decided Iain wasn’t able to continue with the activity and encouraged him to swim to the shore so he could get out of the water.
“It was a rocky shoreline and Iain was not able to fully climb out of the sea and onto one of the ledges. Mr Ridley did climb onto a ledge and threw a throw-line on more than one occasion but Iain was not able to grab it. Iain then fell face-first in the water.”
Mr Ridley dived back into the water to recover the dad and began chest compressions on him, but he was unresponsive, the inquest heard. The remainder of the group, who were continuing to perform the “safety raft” in the water, alerted some nearby climbers who raised the alarm with the emergency services.
He said the Coastguard, RNLI, ambulance and police attended and resuscitation attempts continued but ceased at 4.50pm, when Mr Farrell was confirmed to have died. In a statement read to the hearing, Mr Farrell’s wife Amanda Farrell said her husband, whom she was separated from at the time of his death, had wanted to “make the best of the outside world” with his sons. She said: “Iain was a very supportive father and husband, his life was his family.”
She added that their sons’ lives had been “turned upside down” by their father’s death, which had left them suffering “upset, anger, frustration and a lack of trust”. The mum continued: “I too am grieving for a man I spent 26 years with. Our lives will never be the same again without him. All we can do is keep talking about him to keep his memory alive.”
His brother Matthew described his swimming ability and said: “He didn’t have a reliable swimming technique, he could swim maybe a length or two of a swimming pool before he needed a rest.” He added his brother had chosen the coasteering activity because “it appeared to be a safe and suitable adventure for him to undertake with his boys with acceptable risk”. He described him to be “physically strong” and “fit and healthy if a little overweight”.
David Mutton, former director of Land & Wave, said the company had been running coasteering activities since 2010 and prior to the incident had most recently been licensed by the Adventure Activities Licensing Authority (AALA) in February 2019. He said the National Coasteering Charter set a ratio of one guide for a maximum of 10 participants.
The inquest continues.
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