Calls for barriers to go around "lake" in Middlesbrough playing fields to avoid tragedy
One councillor's revealed how they have seen children playing near the water, and one even fell in
There are calls for a fence to go up around a large body of water in a Middlesbrough field - to prevent any tragedies happening - after a child fell in when it was frozen.
Cllr Joan McTigue, who represents Longlands and Beechwood, wants to see some protection around the body of water on the Beechwood Playing Fields to prevent accidents, especially when temperatures drop.
She said she regularly hears children playing in the area even when it’s dark.
It follows the deaths of 4 children who fell through the ice at Babb's Mill Lake down in the Midlands in December 2022.
A Middlesbrough Council spokesperson said the water was meant to be there and was part of a scheme to prevent the overflowing of manholes and the flooding of homes.
Cllr McTigue said: “I am sure with health and safety you can’t leave a vast amount of water like that. Any child can just go onto it.
“One child fell in, fortunately, he was fine, but I am concerned that children wander and parents don’t know where they are. They come in the dark so nobody can see them.”
The Independent councillor wants to see new safety measures introduced by the council, but she is worried a serious accident could happen before action is taken.
Cllr McTigue said: “Why don’t they just put a fence around it and leave it as a feature if they won’t drain it. But don’t just leave it like that, it’s got litter in it and a freezer in it.
“I have never seen it this big and I would like to know how deep it is in the middle. It would be a nice feature, we have all new trees planted there and a new footpath.
“There are swans, seagulls and ducks. If they put a fence around it, they can’t dump freezers either. This has to be a priority for safety – if it was out in the countryside you could say fair enough but it’s a residential area, you can’t leave a depth of water like that in a residential area.”
In response, a council spokesperson said: “The flood alleviation scheme works which were undertaken on the Saltersgill and Beechwood fields have seen the construction of areas which store surface water during periods of heavy and/or persistent rainfall which is then slowly released through the drainage.
“Prior to this, during heavy rainfall the capacity of the drainage systems on the Saltersgill estate would regularly be exceeded, which has resulted in the overflowing of manholes and contributed to the flooding of properties.
“The scheme is working as intended in supporting the area’s drainage and protecting nearby properties from flood risk and there are no current plans to install fencing, however, the council will continue to monitor the situation.”