Group 'picking cockles' in contaminated Shoreham river

A witness claims a group were collecting shellfish from the River Adur near Norfolk Bridge, Shoreham, on Tuesday.

Southern Water released sewage into the water in Shoreham 16 times on August 25 – just five days before the group were seen.

A man, identified only as Tim, took a video of four people on Tuesday 30.  

One of the group who was on the riverbed

He said: “I saw at first what I thought was a group of people were picking up rubbish from the riverbed.

“After observing for a few minutes, it became quickly apparent they were looking for something else.

"I approached them and could see they were armed with rubber gloves and carrier bags.”

It is illegal to harvest shellfish from the area to sell as it is not classified under food safety regulations.

Officials previously warned seafood from the site is not fit for human consumption due to E.coli risks from contaminated water.

People seen with bags leaving the river

A spokesman for Sussex Police said: "We received reports of a group of people believed to be cockle picking in the River Adur estuary, Shoreham, shortly after 8pm on Tuesday, August 30.

"Officers attended the scene, but the group had moved on and could not be located."

The council has previously warned members of the public not to approach anyone suspected of collecting shellfish from the area.

In a statement last month published online, Adur and Worthing Councils said: “If any person has information that contaminated shellfish harvested from the River Adur is entering the food chain and can provide details of persons seen removing shellfish from this area, please report to us.”

A person with one hand in the water

It comes after Southern Water released sewage across 13 beaches following heavy rain in August.

The water company drew heavy criticism after a video showed a large mass of brown sewage from an outfall pipe near Splash Point, in Seaford, on August 16.

A spokeswoman said at the time: “Thunderstorms brought heavy rain which fell onto parched ground and couldn’t absorb surface run-off, meaning that more rain than usual overwhelmed our network.

The group left the area once confronted

“This led to some overflows – which are used to protect homes, schools, businesses and hospitals from flooding – spilling excess water into the sea in parts of Sussex, including Seaford.”