In the past 15 years there have been over 24 deaths in Foss river, York with many of the victims being York St John university students.
One of these victims was 20-year-old York St John university student Megan Robert, who entered the river after a night out in January 2014. During an interview with her mother, Jackie Roberts was reported saying “It’s a nightmare situation that every parent dreads and I was living it.” She hopes that people will be able to learn from this tragedy in the future and will become more aware of the dangers near this river at night.
There was another victim in April 2014. A York soldier, Tyler Pearson, entered the river while intoxicated on a night out and drowned in the Foss river later that night. The North Yorkshire police conducted an interview with Steve Pearson, the father of Tyler Pearson, where he says “This was once a place of beauty, I can’t see it any more.” He goes on to say “I can’t see a way forward, there is a hole there.” Steve states that he made sure his son knew all the safety regulations when near dangerous rivers, he hopes that the local council and police department will introduce better safety measures that will ensure the safety of the public and will decrease the amount of deaths that have occurred.
I conducted interviews with members of the public who were near the river bank to see what they thought on the matter. Susan, a 32 year old mother who was out with her two young children who will remain nameless, was asked what she thinks about the deaths in Foss river. She said “I couldn’t imagine what that could feel like, the loss of a child is one of the hardest feelings for a parent.” Susan then goes on to say “They need to have barriers around the river and constant security, I can’t believe they haven’t sorted this problem before.” I tried speaking to others but they didn’t want to speak about it as this is a sensitive subject.
These are just some of the many deaths that have taken place in York’s Foss River over the past 15 years, and the number keeps rising each year. The local people of York have been urging the local police and council about installing more safety equipment that can help reduce the risk of deaths in the river from continuing.