Police confirm attending report of "someone jumping from pier" in Southsea
Police have said they attended South Parade Pier yesterday following a report someone “jumped” into the sea.
As reported, fears were sparked among members of the public around 5.30pm that a woman had fallen in the sea and died as D-Day 80 commemorations were taking place nearby on Southsea Common.
Police and the Coastguard attended the incident, with the latter telling The News on Wednesday the concerning event turned out to be a false alarm. Now police have given their account of the event, saying: “We received a report at about 5.30pm that someone jumped from the pier but officers attended and spoke to members of the public who had all been in the area for some time and confirmed no incident had occurred.”
A spokesperson for Maritime and Coastguard Agency had said they did attend an “incident in the vicinity of the pier” when asked about the event yesterday. The agency then added: “HM Coastguard responded to reports of a person possibly in the water at Southsea in the South Parade Pier area.
“At around 5.30pm, Coastguard Rescue Teams from Portsmouth and Hill Head, lifeboats from Gosport and Portsmouth and the Coastguard helicopter from Lydd were sent to the scene alongside the fire and rescue service. After an extensive search, and with no one believed to be in the water, assets were stood down.”
It happened as thousands of people were paying tribute to heroic veterans to mark D-Day 80 at Southsea Common. King Charles, Queen Camilla, the Prince of Wales and other Royal Family members, along with prime minister Rishi Sunak, military personnel, local dignitaries and other special guests were among those present in Portsmouth.