A pleasure boat did not cause or contribute to the tragic death of two children who drowned off Bournemouth beach, a coroner ruled today.
Joe Abbess, 17, and Sunnah Khan, 12, died in a sudden riptide as they swam in the sea next to Bournemouth Pier on 31st May, 2023.
Eleven others, including members of Sunnahs family, were pulled out of the swirling sea by beach RNLI lifeguards.
The Dorset Belle, a sightseeing vessel which left the pier at about the same time as the incident, was later impounded by the police and its skipper arrested for manslaughter.
A senior coroner for Dorset Rachael Griffin had said at a previous pre-inquest review in June that the skipper had shown good practice on the day but she was unable to say for certain its wash had not caused the riptide.
The tragedy claimed the life of 12-year-old Sunnah Khan, from High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire
The teenage boy who died while swimming off Bournemouth Beach was named by friends as Joe Abbess
The Dorset Belle (circled) docked at the pier as the air ambulances departed the beach
But now they have been cleared of wrongdoing following a police investigation and Mrs Griffin declaring there is insufficient evidence to say there is any link or cause with the deaths.
Mrs Griffin said at the pre-inquest review hearing in Bournemouth: I have ruled out the involvement of the boat at the end of the pier as being a causative or contributory factor in Joe and Sunnahs deaths on the basis that it would be speculative to link the boat to their deaths.
So in purpose of the scope of the evidence whilst it may be commented upon the presence of the boat there is insufficient evidence to say there is any link or cause with deaths.
The full joint inquest will begin tomorrow and is due to last two weeks.
Sunnahs family have previously raised concerns about the RNLI response to the incident as it took an hour to find her in the sea.
They claimed a jetski could have been mobilised earlier to look for Sunnah after two members of her family raised the alarm with lifeguards.
But Ms Griffin said that from all the evidence she had read, the emergency services had acted in a timely manner and saved many lives.
One of the men was pulled from the water and had to be given CPR on the beach by lifeguards before being taken away by air ambulance
Lifeguards hurried into the water by Bournemouth Pier after a group of young people got into difficulty in the sea at around 4.30pm Wednesday 21st May, 2023
A 12-year-old girl and 17-year-old boy died after a major incident took place in the water on Bournemouth beach
Thousands of people were enjoying the sunny weather before being asked to leave the beach by police
A previous pre inquest review was told that CCTV footage from Bournemouth Pier showed the riptide occurred at 3.46pm.
Beach lifeguards were alerted to people struggling in the water at 3.53pm and helped recover them from the water.
The first 999 call to the South Western Ambulance Service was made at 4.06pm and the first ambulance arrived at 4.13pm.
Joe, a trainee chef from Southampton, was recovered from the water at 4.18pm but despite attempts to revive him he was declared dead at hospital.
Police officers turned up at the scene at 4.40pm and declared a major incident minutes later.
Sunnah was recovered at 4.46pm and airlifted to Poole Hospital but was pronounced dead on arrival.
Ms Griffin told the hearing that the scope of the joint inquest will look at the safety measures at Bournemouth beach and what procedures were in place on the day.
She said: It is very clear to me how many lives were affected on that day as a result of the incident that arose that led to the tragic deaths of Joe and Sunnah.
A girl of 12 and a boy of 17 were pulled from the sea after getting into difficulties on Wednesday and later died in hospital. Pictured: Bournemouth Pier
There has been an increased police presence at the beach following the incident