Parents of Wellingborough teenager Ronalds invite people to drowning awareness event in his memory
The parents of a Wellingborough boy who died in the River Nene have invited people to a water safety campaign event to be held in his memory.
Ronalds Abele, 17, had been enjoying the sunny weather with a group of friends on May 10 when he died after getting into difficulty as he swam in a stretch near the Embankment.
His grieving parents – mum Laura Kirsteine and dad Thomas Okyere – vowed to campaign for improvements to water safety measures including equipment, education and signage.
On July 25, as part of the UN’s annual World Drowning Prevention Day, Laura and Thomas will host a free awareness and water education event in Ronalds’ memory.
People have been invited to wear blue, the colour of the global awareness day.
Dad Thomas said: “We want people to come to the Embankment and wear a blue top in Ronalds’ memory. It’s all about raising awareness but we are not just doing this as a one-off, we want to get life-saving equipment installed along the river, for our council to come up with a solution.”
People will be able to have a go at using a throwline with a demonstration showing how the equipment can be used to pull someone safely from water.
Northants Fire and Rescue Service is due to attend and Doing it for Dylan campaign founder Beckie Ramsay, who also lost her teenage son to drowning, will support Thomas and Laura.
Dylan died of cold water shock after swimming in a lake. He was 13-years-old.
World Drowning Prevention Day seeks to highlight the ‘tragic and profound’ impact of drowning on families and communities and offer life-saving solutions to prevent it.
The event is due to start at 2pm near the Splash Park at Wellingborough’s Embankment.