Danger! Do Not Dive!
With the hot weather approaching it does get very tempting to jump into the cold sea water to cool down quickly. The three popular diving spots in Barry are Barry Docks, The Old Harbour Pier and The Crowey over The Knap. These areas are full of young people at this time of year, it may seem like harmless fun but did you ever think of the dangers that you are throwing yourself into?
Where the water is in now Barry Dock used to be used as a scrap metal dump. Beneath the dirty water there is a lot of sharp rusty scrap metal which has been sitting there for years. As boats go through the Dock their anchors scrap away at this scrap metal making the edges jagged and sharp. So if you were to jump into the dock it is likely that there is going to be items that you cannot see, things that you could land on that are potentially dangerous. The water in Barry Dock is very unclean and dirty. With all the ships going in and out of there they are dropping all sorts of muck and dirt into the water. It is easy to get ill from swallowing the water.
Another thing which is also dangerous on the Old Harbour Pier as well as the Docks is rocks. Both areas have slopes going into the water, if you dive in at the wrong part of the slope then the water could be shallower than you think. If you dived in head first or feet first if the water id shallow then you could really damage yourself. Also if the rocks are very deep down and you jump in then the water will be too deep. If you are not a strong swimmer then you may find it difficult to make it back up to the top.
The diving point at The Crowey if off a water buoy in the sea which is quite far from the rocks. The water here is very deep so again there is the risk of drowning. Young people diving off these places are warm and just want to cool down fast, but sometimes they forget how cold the sea actually is, even if it is boiling out of the water. If you jump straight into the water, be it at the Dock, the Knap or anywhere, when you have not adjusted your body to the temperature of the water then you can suffer from ‘Cold Water Shock’ which can lead to you hyperventilating (finding it very difficult to breathe) which will make you panic, if you are alone or no-one can see you then there is the risk that you can drown. Especially if you are far away from the rocks or anything you can hold onto then the risk is even worse.
A lifeguard from Barry Dock Lifeboat Station has advised young people to use beaches and swimming pools to cool off, there is almost always a lifeguard on duty on every beach, and this makes them a safe place to swim. If anything was to go wrong then there is someone on hand to help you. The only place young people should be diving are properly guarded pools using diving boards. That may not be as fun as swimming out to sea with your mates, but you’re greatly reducing the risk that anything will go wrong. It is so much safer. Even police have said, “We don’t want to have to deal with death in circumstances where it could be avoided. The dock is a heavy industrial area that should not be used recreationally”.
Young people should have more choice at where they can go swimming today. Ok so there is Barry Leisure Centre, but if you want to be outdoors on a nice day then the only choice you have is beaches. Barry used to have two outdoor pools down the Knap which were properly guarded, but they got closed down. These pools have been built over and are now completely gone. More outdoor pools should be opened so young people have more places to go in the summer.
For now the only safe option is to use beaches and pools. Not diving off unguarded, unsafe piers as the risk to your health is much more important than maybe not having as much fun in a swimming pool or on a beach. You can still have fun, just safe fun!
