Worthing council warning after door set alight on beach

A staff member at Worthing’s Coastal Office near Worthing Lido discovered the door, still smouldering, with pebbles on the beach being dangerously hot.

The area was cordoned off for a time from the public.

Dangerously hot pebbles were fenced off from the public

Adur and Worthing Councils warned that, because the beach contains flint, fires can cause hazards to others.

A spokesman for the council said: “When flint is heated, it can splinter causing razor-sharp flakes that can easily cut through skin.”

He also warned that nails and screws leftover from fires and the potential of burns also cause serious hazards to others on the beach.

“There have been numerous examples where young children have been on beaches without shoes and suffered painful burns,” the spokesman added.

The council also warned that uncontrolled fires could spread to nearby buildings or damage wooden groynes, requiring the emergency services to take time to deal with the incident.

Visitors to the beach are being urged to stay safe and report fires being lit on the beach to the fire service and the police.

Fires along the seafront are prohibited unless in a designated area for barbecues at Lancing Beach.

A number of large purpose-made metal barbecue stations are also accessible during the summer months on Goring Greensward.