A WARNING has been issued about the dangers of jumping into the sea from a height after a man had to be rescued from the water off Bournemouth Pier.

Holidaymaker Emma Nicklin was at the beach on Friday to watch the town’s first fireworks display when she saw a man jump into the sea from the pier.

The 36-year-old, from Worcester, noticed a group of around 10 men in their mid to late 20s who “looked like they’d been drinking” and were “trying to throw one of the lads over the pier”.

“The tide was out a bit so the water was only around 4ft deep. I was watching the lads thinking ‘oh my God, the water’s not deep enough’. You could see people swimming nearby who were only waist-deep,” she said.

“One of the lads then dived off the pier. He hit the bottom and knocked himself out. He was face down and bobbing on the water. You could see the panic on his friends’ faces.

“I went running straight in – it was just instinct, I think. There were quite a few people around, but it was only me and one other lady who helped get him out of the water.

“I put him into the recovery position and sat with him. He was out stone cold and there was blood coming out of his mouth.

“After three or four minutes, the man became responsive. I stayed talking to him and kept him warm until the ambulance arrived.”

A spokesperson for Bournemouth council said seafront staff attended and assisted in the incident, which saw the man hospitalised.

They said jumping from the pier is “both prohibited and extremely dangerous and seafront staff work with the police to enforce this bylaw wherever possible”.

Emma, who was with her partner and seven-year-old son when the incident happened, condemned the man’s actions as a “bad example” to youngsters who may have been watching.

“It could have been a lot worse - he could have broken his neck or even died. The lads were obviously having a laugh but it went terribly wrong.”

South Western Ambulance Service confirmed the incident and said they were called at 6.35pm on Friday to reports a man was unconscious.

“We sent two crews and he was taken to Poole Hospital,” they said.

The RNLI has since issued a fresh warning about the dangerous practice of jumping or diving off piers and other structures.

Keith Colwell, community incident manager, said: “A number of people have been left so badly hurt by jumping from a height into the sea that they will never walk again.

“It’s impossible to tell the depth, or know if there are any obstacles, such as stakes or a recently dumped shopping trolley, by simply looking at the surface of the water. Remember the tide can go in and out very quickly so while the water can be deep during parts of the day, it can soon become shallow. That means you’ll be leaping towards the seabed with insufficient water to break your fall.

“Remember also that younger children might look up to older ones so if they see others jumping from a jetty, bridge, cliff or harbour wall, they might do it as well. Unfortunately, though, they may not be strong enough to swim to safety.”