Concerns rise about bridge jumping in Wallingford

There are concerns that young thrillseekers jumping from Wallingford Bridge could suffer serious injury as a result.

There has been a rise in the activity during the two major heatwaves across the county in July and August which saw temperatures rise between 34°C and 40°C.

READ MORE: Bonfire spreads out of control destroying FIVE buildings in Oxford

Deaths have occurred from jumping off bridges around the town, including that of RAF serviceman William Lovelock, 27, who died when he hit his head after jumping from Shillingford Bridge in October, 2003.

Since then, police have frequently warned people that bridge jumping is an "idiotic practice which puts people's lives at risk".

One nearby resident said: "There are a lot of young people jumping from the bridge. Please talk to your kids about how dangerous this is. I really don't want to see anyone at Wallingford School with a serious injury."

Another added: "Very sad as a number of people have died in water already this year."

However, one person commented that people had been doing it since the 1960s, adding: "It's what kids do".

The river in Wallingford. Picture by Google Maps (Image: Google)

READ MORE: Road sweeping company could be fined for allegedly accessing water without consent

Others agreed, saying: "This has been going on for years. Unfortunately nothing will stop them."

Mayor Marcus Harris, who has lived in the town since he was a child, said he wished children would stop jumping but said there was nothing the town council could do.

"It's something kids have been doing ever since I was young," he said. "Though it is not something I have ever done myself.

"I know people who have sustained terrible injuries doing it and we've had deaths from it.

READ MORE: 'Oxfordshire reservoir should be given green light due to threat of droughts'

"The trouble is the River Thames gets very deep in the middle and very shallow around the edges and if you misjudge it you can sustain serious injuries.

"It's a very stupid thing to do. However, there is very little we can do. No one is going to put a police patrol up there or install a fence around the sides because kids will just climb over the top or the sides.

"The bridge is Oxfordshire County Council property and there is nothing that the town council can do. We can't close the bridge we can only discourage it.

"I don't agree with it. I don't encourage it and I wish they wouldn't do it because I don't want to see anyone hurt in Wallingford.

"I hope nobody dies but at the end of the day there's not much we can do to stop them."

-

Read more from this author

This story was written by Gee Harland. She joined the team in 2022 as a senior multimedia reporter.

Gee covers Wallingford, Wantage and Didcot.

Get in touch with her by emailing: Gee.harland@newsquest.co.uk

Follow her on Twitter @Geeharland

A message from our Editor

Thank you for reading this story and supporting the Oxford Mail.

If you like what we do please consider getting a subscription for the Oxford Mail and in return we’ll give you unrestricted access with less adverts across our website from the latest news, investigations, features, and sport.

Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Tik Tok for more. 

You can also join the conversation in our Facebook groups: stay ahead of traffic alerts here, keep up to date with the latest from court here, share your favourite memories of Oxford here, get your daily dose of celebrity news here and take some time out with news that will make you smile. 

If you’ve got a story for our reporters, send us your news here. You can also list an event for free here.