PARENTS heading to the seaside have been urged to take selfies with their children after 40 kids went missing on a crowded UK beach in just one day.
The HM Coastguard advice comes after rescue teams received a high number of call outs to a crowded beach on Saturday.
Police in Chichester said there had been “multiple reports”; of lost children on West Wittering beach during the hot weather at the weekend.
It said all reports “required a large number of resources to assist them in being reunited”;.
confirmed all the children reported lost on the beach had been found safe and well.
An 11-year-old child was also reported missing from nearby Camber Sands beach on Saturday.
The child was found safe and well prior to the coastguards and lifeboat crew arriving on scene.
said it had been “an exceptionally busy day”;.
‘Take a selfie’
Tom Barnett, network commander at HM Coastguard said:“Keeping an eye on your children is obviously the best way to stop them wandering off into difficult situations, but we understand sometimes that can be a challenge.
“Busy beaches can be disorientating, especially to little ones, so it’s good to have a few Plan Bs up your sleeve.
“Take a photo of your child when you arrive that clearly shows what they look like and what they are wearing and agree a meeting point if they get lost like a lifeguard station.
“Some places even give away free kids’ wristbands to write your phone number on so you can be called if you do get separated.
“Remember in an emergency at the coast call 999 and ask for the coastguard.”;
A spokesman for Sussex Police added: “Please remain vigilant regarding the location of your children.
“We have had multiple reports come through to Sussex Police of parents losing sight of their children and being unable to find them due to how busy the beach becomes, which has required a large number of resources to assist them in being reunited with families.”;
It added it also had to deal with several other incidents, such as helping people who had got into difficulty in the water, administering “medical assistance”; and “setting up a helicopter landing site in Chichester”;.
The latest advice follows on from an urgent warning issued to parents by police in April after “several”; children went missing on beaches near the coast.
At the time, cops issued a statement for people to make sure that kids are not left unsupervised at beaches as they can be “very dangerous places”;.
Lancashire Police’s Fylde unit said the warm weather had led to a rise in visitors to nearby beaches but it was “disappointing to see that youngsters are still regularly permitted to approach the water unsupervised”;.
‘This could prove fatal’
In a post, they said: “This could prove fatal, even to those who are competent swimmers.”;
Officers added: “In two days, there have been several reports of missing children, which have used a significant amount of police and coastguard resources.
“These incidents are completely avoidable and have a detrimental impact to the service we offer, as when police officers are looking for lost children, we are unable to deal with or prevent crime.”;
