Covidiot windsurfers are fined after driving 125 miles from West Midlands to North Wales to enjoy the waves as police blast their non-essential trip
- Pair travelled to Black Rock Sands, Porthmadog, despite Covid-19 lockdown
- Yesterday deaths hit 4,934 and cases rose by 5,903 to 47,806 across the UK
- Comes after Scotland’s chief medical officer broke her own lockdown advice
- Dr Catherine Calderwood quit after visiting her second home 44 miles away
By Sebastian Murphy-bates For Mailonline
Published: | Updated:
Two windsurfers have been fined after driving 125 miles from the West Midlands to North Wales to enjoy the waves as police blasted their non-essential trip.
The pair travelled to Gwynedd despite the nationwide lockdown amid the coronavirus pandemic.
North Wales Police said they went to Black Rock Sands in Porthmadog to head out into the sea despite people being told to only travel for essential reasons.
The windsurfers were stopped at the Welsh coast and fined as police warned their travel was not essential amid the coronavirus outbreak
The force said that if they had got into difficulty in the water, they could have tied up valuable resources.
A spokesman said: ‘Today two males from the West Mids area were reported by concerned members of the public who spotted them wind surfing at Black Rock Sands, Porthmadog.
‘They were issued with penalty notices and advised to return home immediately. Their trip was not essential, and apart from the risks posed by travelling around the country potentially spreading virus anywhere they stopped, they could have tied up valuable resources had they had an accident or got into difficulty at sea, risking RNLI, ambulance and diverting essential NHS resources. ‘Stay home to save lives.’
Police have been urging tourists to keep away from North Wales this weekend as they try to enforce social distancing measures brought in to tackle the coronavirus outbreak.
Yesterday sadly saw deaths climb by 621 to 4,934 and cases rise by 5,903 to 47,806 across the UK.
It came after Scotland’s chief medical officer resigned after she admitted to ignoring her own lockdown advice.
The images, published in the Scottish Sun, emerged amid continuing advice from the Scottish government to stay at home in order to save lives and protect the NHS
Earlsferry, Fife, is 44 miles away from Edinburgh – a drive of around an hour
Last week Dr Calderwood, 51, tweeted a photo of her family from their main residence in Edinburgh as they clapped for the front-line NHS staff working to stop the spread of Covid-19
Dr Catherine Calderwood had earlier apologised live on TV after being given a police warning for twice visiting her family’s coastal retreat in Earlsferry, Fife, more than 40 miles from her main home.
In a press conference beside Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon today, Dr Calderwood said her actions were ‘a mistake and human error’ and that were ‘no excuses’.
Dr Calderwood issued an apology and was initially backed by First Minister Nicola Sturgeon to remain in the role.
Photographs, published in The Scottish Sun on Saturday, showed Dr Calderwood and her family near their coastal retreat in Earlsferry, Fife, over the weekend.
In the press conference, Dr Calderwood also admitted to visiting the cottage with her husband the previous weekend.
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