Tributes Paid to Victims of Paddleboarding Tragedy as Sentencing Begins
The families of four people who died during a stand-up paddleboard tour have paid tribute to their loved ones at the sentencing hearing of a woman convicted over their deaths. According to Sky News, Andrea Powell, 41, Morgan Rogers, 24, and Nicola Wheatley, 40, died after their paddleboards went over a weir in Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire, on 30 October 2021. Paul O’Dwyer, 42, one of the tour’s instructors, also died after he re-entered the water in an attempt to rescue the others.
The sentencing hearing of Nerys Lloyd, 39, began on Tuesday at Swansea Crown Court. Lloyd previously pleaded guilty to four counts of gross negligence manslaughter and one offence under the Health and Safety At Work Act. Sky News reported that there were "extremely hazardous conditions" on the River Cleddau on the day of the tour, which had been organised by Lloyd, owner and sole director of Salty Dog Co Ltd. The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) stated that an expert had concluded the tour "should not have taken place".
The families of the victims addressed the court, paying tribute to their loved ones and expressing their grief and anger towards Lloyd. Andrea Powell’s husband Mark said the three-year wait for a sentence was "caused by Nerys Lloyd not admitting to her failings until recently, only thinking about number one". He added that the couple had only moved to Wales in 2018, and "little were we to know that three years later the move would culminate in Andrea’s tragic death". John Taylor, Ms Powell’s father, described her as a "lovely, joyous person and loved by all who knew her".
Morgan Rogers’s mother, Theresa Hall, addressed Lloyd, saying: "You and your arrogance have stopped me being able to fully grieve for my daughter". She described her daughter as her "only daughter, [her] precious girl", adding that she was the "glue" who had a "great zest for life". Ms Rogers’s father, Robert Rogers, said she was a "peacemaker who kept her family together, without her now, we are a ship without its rudder".
The court also heard from the families of Nicola Wheatley and Paul O’Dwyer. Darren Wheatley, husband of Ms Wheatley, addressed Lloyd, saying: "You have hidden behind your carefully orchestrated, charitable smokescreen". He added that he was once a "patient, extremely tolerant and forgiving man, but you have changed that forever". Ceri O’Dwyer, Mr O’Dwyer’s wife and a survivor of the tragedy, said she had "shrunk [her] life to avoid [the defendant]" and had "become an outsider in [her] own community". She added that her husband had "made a devastating mistake… but he died trying to save others".
In a statement read on his behalf, Mr O’Dwyer’s son said: "My dad wasn’t just my dad, he was my best friend and biggest inspiration, and now he’s gone". The court also heard a personal statement from Gemma Cox, another survivor of the tragedy and the best friend of the defendant, who said the incident had "turned [her] world upside down". She said Lloyd had "shown remorse to [her] every single day" and she had seen the defendant "suffering day after day".
The hearing continues, with the defendant sitting in the dock wearing a blue shirt and appearing unmoved throughout most of the victim personal statements. Sky News will provide further updates as the sentencing hearing progresses.
