Investigating into the deaths of seven men who drowned at a popular south coast beach last summer, an inquest concluded that the unfortunate incident could only be attributed to misadventure. Mohit Dupar, 36, and Brazilian Gustavo Silva Da Cruz, 19, both drowned at Camber Sands on July 24, last year. Five young friends from London, aged between 18 to 27, drowned at the same beach a month later. It is reported that despite recommendations from the RNLI to employ them, lifeguards were not deployed until after the five deaths.
Senior Coroner Alan Craze however, in his conclusions following a five-day inquest in Hastings, East Sussex, said it was “not known” whether deploying lifeguards would have prevented the deaths. “The RNLI had recommended, amongst other measures, deploying lifeguards at the beach in 2013 but this had not happened. Of course, it is not known whether such a step would have prevented the deaths, but it has now been implemented.” The inquest heard that all five men were healthy and competent swimmers when they died on a sunny day in August, but beneath the surface at Camber Sands lurked “hidden dangers”. The area was manned by beach patrol staff who reunited lost children with their parents and dealing with lost property.
