Watersports blog

The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI), a charity organization that aims to save lives at sea (inshore and coasts) along British Isles, has issued a new warning especially to young people not to do the so-called “tombstoning,” an adventure wherein a group of individuals would do cliff diving into the sea simultaneously.

The warning was issued in light with the death of a teenager named Jamie Sutton in Sunderland earlier last month. According to reports, Sutton encountered difficulties in the rough seas after the cliff diving thus resulting to drowning.

The volunteer group is optimistic that the latest warning issues against group cliff diving will prevent another tragedy in the future.

Steve Wills, a safety manager for RNLI, said that “tombstoning” became popular because it is a fun adventure for the group but added that there are a lot of risks involved especially if no appropriate precautions were made. He expected an increase in number of groups attempting this since summer is fast approaching.

Aside from the warnings, Wills revealed that they will launch a 24/7 support in case another incident happens but he’s optimistic that they won’t be getting much calls after the issuance of the warning.