Saturday 13 August 2022 03:58 PM Heatwave drowning toll hits 21 as man's body is pulled from nature reserve pool trends now
A man's body has been pulled from a pool of water in the Black Country bringing the heatwave drowning toll to 21.
The unidentified man was discovered in water at Park Lime Pits nature reserve in Walsall.
Witnesses reported seeing the man's body being pulled from the water at the nature reserve, off Park Road, this morning.
He was confirmed dead at the scene in Rushall after his body was spotted just after 10am.
Police officers have now launched an investigation and are treating his death as unexplained. Work is being carried out to identify the man and inform his family of his death, it has been confirmed.
A West Midlands Police spokesman said: 'The body of a man was discovered in water at Park Lime Pits, Walsall, at just after 10am today (August 13).
'Sadly the man was confirmed dead at the scene and we're in the process of identifying and informing his family.
The body of a man has been pulled from a pool of water at Park Lime Pits, Walsall, (pictured) in the Black Country bringing the total heatwave drowning toll to 21 so far this summer
'The death is currently being treated as unexplained.'
It comes after two people were pulled from bodies of water on Thursday as the country was again hit with sweltering temperatures.
A body was pulled from the River Thames near a sailing club after a frantic search for a man who had disappeared under the water - as sky-high temperatures plunge the country into drought.
Firefighters, paramedics and a dive team were called to a stretch of the waterway near Desborough Sailing Club in Shepperton, Surrey at around 8pm on Thursday night following reports a man had gone underwater but then failed to resurface.
The man's next of kin are aware and are being supported by specially trained officers, Surrey Police added in a statement.
Also on Thursday, the body of another man was pulled from the water at Aira Point, close to the ferry stop, in Ullswater after a paddleboarder went missing.
Maryport Rescue coastguards were called out at 1.10pm and were joined by Patterdale Mountain Rescue Team, Cumbria Fire and Rescue Service, the Ullswater ranger the Whitehaven coastguard team and North West Ambulance Service.
Lewis Agyei-Sekyireh from Enfield got into difficulty in North Met Lake in Cheshunt on Monday and police rushed to the scene at 5pm to desperately save the young teenager
Cumbria Police confirmed the body of a man has been recovered from the water.
Formal identification has yet to take place but the missing's man family was told of the discovery and the death was not being treated as suspicious.
At least 21 people, including several teenagers, have drowned in the past month as the sweltering heat drives more and more people to sometimes perilous waters to cool off.
On Wednesday, an elderly woman was pulled from the water at Walton Beach in Essex at 6.20pm. She was pronounced dead at the scene. On the same day, a man died after getting into difficulties in the sea at Humberston Fitties in Grimsby at around 4pm.
Tributes have since been paid to a 'loving and kind-hearted' 14 year-old-boy whose body was pulled from a lake in Hertfordshire on Monday last week.
Lewis Agyei-Sekyireh from Enfield got into difficulty in North Met Lake in Cheshunt on Monday and officers rushed to the scene at 5pm to desperately save the young teenager.
Brian Sasu (left) and Alfie McCraw (right), 14 and 16 respectively, who have both drowned
Robert Hattersley (left) and Jamie Lewin (right), 13 and 16 respectively, who both drowned last month
An urgent search was launched as police, fire crews and paramedics scrambled to the area just before 5pm. Officers have confirmed that a body was found approximately six hours later of the teenager who had a ‘lot of potential in football’ and a ‘real love’ for music.
It comes as a drought was officially declared for parts of England yesterday following the driest summer in half a century.
The conditions, which have almost completely deprived some areas of rainfall all summer, have prompted the National Drought Group to move parts of the South West, parts of southern and central England, and the East of England into official drought status.
The change could lead to more measures such as hosepipe bans, however, the Environment Agency has reassured the public that essential water supplies are safe.
The NDG is made up of representatives from the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), water companies, the Environment Agency (EA), the National Farmers' Union (NFU), Natural England, Consumer Council for Water, water services regulator Ofwat, Water UK and the Drinking Water Inspectorate, as well as the Angling Trust and the Rivers Trust.
At a meeting earlier this summer, it moved most of England into 'prolonged dry weather' status, the first of four stages used to describe its response.
It comes as a drought is officially declared for parts of England following the driest summer in half a century. The conditions, which have almost completely deprived some areas of rainfall all summer, have prompted the National Drought Group to move parts of the South West, parts of southern and central England, and the East of England into official drought status
Eight of 14 areas designated by the EA have now moved to 'drought', the second stage, including Devon and Cornwall, Solent and South Downs, Kent and South London, Herts and North London, East Anglia, Thames, Lincolnshire and Northamptonshire, and East Midlands.
Water minister Steve Double said action was already being taken by the Government, the EA and others to manage the impacts.
'All water companies have reassured us that essential supplies are still safe, and we have made it clear it is their
