A WELCOME ADDITION : PC Paul Rawson with the donated PWC. ESSEX Police s marine unit have been gifted a jet ski by the Maldon District Council. The Personal Water Craft (PWC) donated to the Essex Police Burnham-based marine unit was launched on Monday to tackle antisocial behaviour on the waterways. As Covid restrictions ease and the warmer weather arrives more people are expected to head to the coastlines and waterways this summer. This can cause concerns for the marine communities especially as Essex Police have seen reports of antisocial behaviour increase in relation to the use of PWCs on the River Blackwater, the River Colne, Brightlingsea and Point Clear.
POLICE officers undergoing waterside training had to put their skills to the test much sooner than anticipated after a member of the public got into difficulty in the water. PCs Anna Groves and Tom Eldridge along with another officer from the Force Support Unit, were undergoing training to qualify as reserve officers for the Marine Unit based in Burnham. The three officers were practising handling one of the smaller vessels at Burnham Marina yesterday (May 11) when they saw a man fall into the water as he climbed from a boat to the jetty. The team quickly went to help the man and found that he had become tangled in a rope under the water.