Shrewsbury woman's kayak death - coroner critical

A coroner has criticised a kayaking trip off the Anglesey coast which ended with the death of a 53-year-old Shropshire woman.

Elizabeth Ashbee, an environmental engineer of Ashley Street, Underdale, Shrewsbury, and also an experienced kayaker, drowned at the end of August last year after becoming separated from a group of kayakers during the trip.

An inquest at Llangefni yesterday was told that she had been with members of Shrewsbury Canoe Club.

Steven Martindale, one of the party, said: "Since this day the club has introduced new procedures about how it does things."

But he said the outing involved a group of friends rather than a club activity.

Several kayakers had paddled out of a sheltered bay near Rhoscolyn but the trip went wrong when one capsized and lost his paddle. His craft had to be towed to the shore but the kayakers were blown south.

Mr Martindale said he last saw Mrs Ashbee close to Rhosneigr. He and another three kayakers, who eventually got ashore at Porth Trecastell, had thought she had made it to safety. The alarm wasn't raised until it was realised she had not made it to her car. Ms Ashbee's body was spotted in the sea by an RAF helicopter crew two days later. Her kayak had washed up on the beach at Morfa Nefyn on the Lleyn Peninsula.

The kayakers didn't have flares or means of communication. Mr Martindale said a radio had gone missing.

Coroner Dewi Pritchard-Jones recorded a verdict of accidental death. He said: "The decision to go to the beacon wasn't a wise one. The wind especially swept them south.

"The planning wasn't the wisest. What strikes me here is the emergency services were not informed until very late on. Had the group had any method of communication and help had been summoned then this inquest would probably not be taking place. When the party reached shore it's regrettable they hadn't realised earlier something had happened to Elizabeth Ashbee and informed the coastguard."

By Russell Roberts