Urgent warning after nine water-related deaths during UK heatwave

A stark warning has been issued to Brits following the deaths of nine people, many of them children, who got into difficulty in open water during a period of record-breaking temperatures.

The Royal Life Saving Society (RLSS) told the public to "stop and think" before entering the water. The charity added that "warmer weather unfortunately correlates to an increase in accidental drownings" and stressed that despite warmer air, "water temperatures remain very cold," posing a significant risk.

This urgent plea comes as England and Wales experienced their hottest May day on record, with Kew Gardens provisionally reaching 35.1C and Cardiff Bute Park hitting 32.9C on Tuesday, according to the Met Office.

Fatal incidents have been reported across the UK in recent days, including in South Yorkshire, West Yorkshire, Cornwall, Hampshire, Warwickshire, Cheshire, Pembrokeshire, Lincolnshire, and Lancashire.

Declan Sawyer, 15, died after getting into trouble at Swanholme Lakes, Lincoln, on Sunday.

Also on Sunday, a 72-year-old woman died after being pulled from the water at West Angle Bay beach in Pembrokeshire, Wales, at around 3.15pm.

A 13-year-old boy, understood to be Reco Puttock, died after getting into difficulty at Leadbeater Dam, near Halifax, West Yorkshire, on Monday, while the body of a teenage girl was recovered from the water at Kingsbury Water Park, Warwickshire.

The same day, a man in his 60s died of cardiac arrest after entering the sea at Tregirls Beach, Padstow, to help two family members who were in difficulty, Devon and Cornwall Police said.

The body of a teenager was recovered from the water at Rother Valley Country Park, Rotherham, in the early hours of Tuesday morning, South Yorkshire Police said.

Another body has been found in the search for a teenage boy who went missing after he was last seen swimming at Hawley Lake on the Hampshire/Surrey border on Tuesday afternoon.

And on Tuesday evening, Lancashire Police said a body had been recovered from the River Ribble after a 12-year-old boy got into difficulty while swimming with friends at Ribchester.

On Wednesday, Cheshire Police said the body of a 17-year-old boy was found after he went missing in Pickmere Lake at Marston, Northwich.