Friend of Baildon victim wishing more had been done after latest fatal accident (From Bradford Telegraph and Argus)

Friend of Baildon victim wishing more had been done after latest fatal accident

8:49pm Thursday 11th March 2010 in

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A friend of Baildon student Gavin Terry, who died after falling into the River Aire, has spoken of his despair as another student died in the same stretch of water.

Fabio Tozzi, 21, who campaigned for better safety measures at the River Aire in Leeds city centre, said he felt the death of Matthew Wilcox could have been prevented.

He said: “Where Gavin fell you could fit a car through the gap in the barrier. There are parts where the barriers aren’t good enough and parts where there are just poles with wires .”

Mr Terry, a former pupil of St Bede’s Catholic Grammar School, Heaton, fell into the Aire in 2008. The body of Leeds student Matthew Wilcox was pulled from the river last Friday.

“Maybe if we had campaigned harder Matthew Wilcox wouldn’t have fallen in,” said Mr Tozzi. “When I heard about this it was exactly the same, I felt like I was reliving it all again. If someone had done something then maybe Gavin wouldn’t have fallen in. It’s just a matter of time now to see who’s next.”

A spokesman for Leeds City Council said: “We offer our deepest sympathies to the family and friends of Matthew Wilcox during this difficult time and we will work with our partners, British Waterways Board, the police and the landowners along that stretch of the river to see whether there is anything we can do to improve the situation.”

Laurence Morgan, British Waterways manager for the North East region, said the responsibility of laying barriers would lie with the owner of the land at the edge of the river.

He said: “Although fencing off the waterfront may appear to be the favourable solution, there are a number of considerations which need to be taken into account, such as safe access to and from the water for boaters, acceptable access for the emergency services and the safe rescue of those who need help when they find themselves in difficulty.”

He said Aire Action, a partnership between the Council, British Waterways, Yorkshire Water and the Environment Agency, was working to, “minimise risk to the public”.

People can find out more about the safety campaign by visiting the Petition For Safer Railings in Leeds Facebook site.