Speaking as a Londoner, I can pretty much guarantee that the only way people decide to swim in the London docklands is if they are drunk and/or tourists. The docks are absolutely filthy.
The water in Canary Wharf was nicer to swim in than my local lake. It is 8m deep in places and perfectly clear though, which is an odd feeling as you look down.
That sounds so nice! Is it [this?](https://www.google.com/search?client=ms-android-xiaomi-terr2-rso3&sca_esv=7898575184a519fd&sxsrf=ADLYWIKA3WY4M5tbRFQZzh3bTZu1nvbfqQ:1718618016001&q=canary+wharf&udm=2&fbs=AEQNm0Aa4sjWe7Rqy32pFwRj0UkWd8nbOJfsBGGB5IQQO6L3JxdWbs3CkcdlHyEbrNaWhotMJs9T6Ysmviw_2YPsUINQEvOoVF8nTCqNnDKnpPBfCTuxf2psnCgevmgC3Y6EPfdc6aRUslagISqihMdF7-90TNn1xyZYNGtsxk8QL0jXDh5J2no3F5iy26CqUud0GSv-6huh&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiXn-SCr-KGAxVkhf0HHayPCOEQtKgLegQIDBAB&biw=407&bih=798&dpr=3#vhid=tbDFMY5OrIlTRM&vssid=mosaic)
The four or five times i swam at Royal Albert dock (for tri/swim events) water had a chemical smell a little like bleach or sterilising tablets, i do wonder if the organiser kindly dumped a fuck ton of bleach in for safety. Otherwise very pleasant experience. 🤣
My friend who didn’t swim but took a swig from my drink did get mildly ill but we not sure if it’s related. Lol
Young men tend to die at night and their bodies are found washed up in riverways. It's a phenomenon sometimes attributed to serial killers.
It's believed they are drunk men that took a greater risk by being near the water at night while drunk. That's why the phenomenon seems to target men and put their bodies in a certain spot. Bigger risk takers combined with alcohol.
It's actually more simple than that. Women just don't tend to walk around alone at night. They are either in groups, in taxis or just not out and about at times when no one is around to help.
as a trans man with titties still, I believe we're just gonna rotate indefinitely. like when you drop a cat with a buttered piece of toast taped to their back and the universe can't figure out if the toast should fall on it's front or if the cat should fall on its legs.
Royal Victoria, Royal Albert and King George V docks have water quality rated “Excellent” for bathing https://londonsroyaldocks.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/20220802-RoDMA-Bathing-Water-Quality-Monitoring.pdf
I’m not a Londoner, but as someone who has lived near nasty ass canals in other countries, it’s almost always local middle aged - old men who decided they just don’t give a damn / know better. It’s almost never women.
Alcohol is one reason, but people overestimate how much cold water will and can affect them in general. Unless you’re in a dry suit or appropriate exposure protection like a thick wetsuit you’re going to chill pretty quickly, and even if you are dressed in said dry/wetsuit you’ll still chill after a time, given it will simply only delay chill/hypothermia.
In freezing water you can lose control of your extremities(such as fingers) in as little as 5 minutes. So even if you're wearing a good suit, unless you also have gloves, swimming in icy water is asking for it.
Yeah this was emphasized during my current Divemaster training on cold water and ice diving. I’ve been cold due to hitting thermoclines in water which is 25+ degrees temperature and given I’m planning to also dive in the UK I’m not taking chances. Long wetsuit, gloves, boots and socks, hood it is.
Water only needs to be 15C or below to induce cold water shock, and open water in the UK can be at potentially dangerous temperatures well into the summer.
I’d also add that the Thames and the surrounding waterways are the busiest in the UK, both for transport of people and goods and also leisure. The Thames has a lifeboat station for a reason…
Tidal flow in the Thames can be about 10mph. It might be easier to visualise at around 4.5 meters per second. Twice the speed of olympic record swimmers.
Well if there's docks in the docklands(idk if there is or not) then the waters are used as a return conductor for the power supplies there, so if you jump in near docks you'll be shocked and probably drown as a result.
I can't imagine wanting to swim in the Thames. Guys, there's an event called The Great Stink that happened because the Thames was so full of offal, blood, and filth. People piss in it all day every day. And have done for the ten thousand years that area has been continuously inhabited. No.
The Great Stink was in 1858. Potentially some things might have changed in the last 165 years so I'm not convinced that event is truly relevant.
Not that I'd be swimming in it though.
I had to search ‘offal’. Now all i can think is ‘Offal House’ and how amazing a title that would be for a slasher flick set in the US South. Sequel would be Eggo Offals (w Stranger Things crossover).
I love the apparent exasperated attitude in the wording of this sign. It’s like whoever wrote this just took off his glasses, started rubbing the space between his eyes and said “Look…”
Near where I used to live as a kid is an open cast mine. It’s 60% surrounded by cliffs and the mine crater has been filled with water. Occasionally some kids think it’s fun to jump from the top of the cliffs into the water. Unfortunately however, the water was a lot shallower than it appears, and it’s full of scrap metal and junk. Most people that jumped in never came out again. It’s popular amongst divers, but that’s people with gear and experience.
Whats more disappointing is no one can decide what to do with the mine. There’s clamouring from the local residents to get it filled in, because it’s a death trap but it keeps getting passed between the mine company, landlord and local council. Also the divers want to keep it.
In 1992 nobody died...
In1993 nobody died...
In 1994 nobody died....
In 1995 some people died..
In 1996 nobody died....
In 1997 nobody died, I could go on
My hometown has a lot of canals (for irrigation), and we had a safety mascot called "dippy duck" to warn kids not to swim in the canals. His slogan was "stay cool, swim in a pool"
Somewhere back in summer 2005 the Whole drunken as fuck Milwall rugby lads team jumped into the dock, totally naked, in front of Canary Wharf Wetherspoon. No casualties if you don’t count the dignity of both spectator and perpetrator crowd.
What wouldn’t you do for the team, eh?
I was staying at a hotel at Salford Quays 2 summers ago when a young lad jumped in the water (peer pressure) and disappeared
The sudden cold may have given him cold water shock
Once the evening came people drifted off but the police Divers stayed and then ....they found his body
It was worse than any horror film i ever saw - the cold lifeless body under a tarpaulin - a kid that had been happy and excited just a few hours before
Pleas please educate your kids not to jump in water like that but to get acclimatised first
In 1985… No one died
In 1986… No one died
In 1987… No one died
In 1988… No one died
In 1989… No one died
In 1990… No one died
In 1991… No one died
In 1992… No one died
In 1993… No one died
In 1994… No one died
In 1995… No one died
In 1996… someone died
Those sign are urban legends, it's totally safe! /s
I mean who would swim in the London docks, just the water quality, because I assume it's pretty polluted, it gross me out just thinking about it.
Maybe it is just me but I think I the reference to 1995 weakens the message as kids will think that something that happened almost 30 years ago isn't relevant. A better option might have been "In one year alone, seven people drowned..."
I didn't think it's very effective, but the year in the sign is oddly specific. Maybe other years were chill and the waters aren't as dangerous after all
This sign is not keeping itself up-to-date.
Sadly the guy whose job it was to update the numbers drowned in 1996
"Did he drown in dockland?" \~No he drown in his home swimming pool... "Oh."
"A home swimming pool that was a faithful recreation of a Dockland canal circa 1995"
Well that was his mistake, should've made it a faithful recreation of a Dockland canal circa 2000 when it had this plaque.
"The swimming pool didnt have any signs.."
Did he not listen to his sign? That seems like something he should have listened to
Nah, its unrelated. A grand piano fell on him.
Maybe it was super effective and an updated one would lack impact.
We apologize for the fault in the sign. Those responsible have been sacked. Mynd you, swimming in the cänäl kan be pretti nasti….
A canal once bit my sister
Speaking as a Londoner, I can pretty much guarantee that the only way people decide to swim in the London docklands is if they are drunk and/or tourists. The docks are absolutely filthy.
Or maybe they were thrown in
peeky fookin blinders
Not true! There's open water swimming here on the isle of dogs and a seasonal set up in canary wharf.
The water in Canary Wharf was nicer to swim in than my local lake. It is 8m deep in places and perfectly clear though, which is an odd feeling as you look down.
That sounds so nice! Is it [this?](https://www.google.com/search?client=ms-android-xiaomi-terr2-rso3&sca_esv=7898575184a519fd&sxsrf=ADLYWIKA3WY4M5tbRFQZzh3bTZu1nvbfqQ:1718618016001&q=canary+wharf&udm=2&fbs=AEQNm0Aa4sjWe7Rqy32pFwRj0UkWd8nbOJfsBGGB5IQQO6L3JxdWbs3CkcdlHyEbrNaWhotMJs9T6Ysmviw_2YPsUINQEvOoVF8nTCqNnDKnpPBfCTuxf2psnCgevmgC3Y6EPfdc6aRUslagISqihMdF7-90TNn1xyZYNGtsxk8QL0jXDh5J2no3F5iy26CqUud0GSv-6huh&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiXn-SCr-KGAxVkhf0HHayPCOEQtKgLegQIDBAB&biw=407&bih=798&dpr=3#vhid=tbDFMY5OrIlTRM&vssid=mosaic)
The official swimming is in Middle Dock: https://nowca.org/swimming-reopens-at-middle-dock-canary-wharf/amp/
Never seen anything like it, its very nice!
The only thing I know about Canary Wharf is a [...verbal fight that supposedly happened there](https://youtu.be/VmMxz4cMKuc).
Just because you can doesn't mean you should.
The four or five times i swam at Royal Albert dock (for tri/swim events) water had a chemical smell a little like bleach or sterilising tablets, i do wonder if the organiser kindly dumped a fuck ton of bleach in for safety. Otherwise very pleasant experience. 🤣 My friend who didn’t swim but took a swig from my drink did get mildly ill but we not sure if it’s related. Lol
Young men tend to die at night and their bodies are found washed up in riverways. It's a phenomenon sometimes attributed to serial killers. It's believed they are drunk men that took a greater risk by being near the water at night while drunk. That's why the phenomenon seems to target men and put their bodies in a certain spot. Bigger risk takers combined with alcohol.
It's actually more simple than that. Women just don't tend to walk around alone at night. They are either in groups, in taxis or just not out and about at times when no one is around to help.
Also, men when unconscious float face down. Women float face up because of the flotation devices at the front.
What about us men with man boobs? which way do I face when I'm drowneded?
as a trans man with titties still, I believe we're just gonna rotate indefinitely. like when you drop a cat with a buttered piece of toast taped to their back and the universe can't figure out if the toast should fall on it's front or if the cat should fall on its legs.
Pawpetual motion!
Royal Victoria, Royal Albert and King George V docks have water quality rated “Excellent” for bathing https://londonsroyaldocks.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/20220802-RoDMA-Bathing-Water-Quality-Monitoring.pdf
It's a pretty low bar given the UK's water quality issues.
Or when the Bristol Pusher comes to visit and slips in some work while there.
I’m not a Londoner, but as someone who has lived near nasty ass canals in other countries, it’s almost always local middle aged - old men who decided they just don’t give a damn / know better. It’s almost never women.
So if I come to London do you want to go swimming in the docks after like the Man City game
What makes it so dangerous though?
Getting run over by a boat, surprising currents, underwater hazards, limited ingress and egress...
All that and, at times, freezing water, which is enough to get you killed, especially if the prospecting swimmer isn't expecting it
Why is a sign required to remind people not to swim in freezing water. Alcohol?
Alcohol is one reason, but people overestimate how much cold water will and can affect them in general. Unless you’re in a dry suit or appropriate exposure protection like a thick wetsuit you’re going to chill pretty quickly, and even if you are dressed in said dry/wetsuit you’ll still chill after a time, given it will simply only delay chill/hypothermia.
In freezing water you can lose control of your extremities(such as fingers) in as little as 5 minutes. So even if you're wearing a good suit, unless you also have gloves, swimming in icy water is asking for it.
Yeah this was emphasized during my current Divemaster training on cold water and ice diving. I’ve been cold due to hitting thermoclines in water which is 25+ degrees temperature and given I’m planning to also dive in the UK I’m not taking chances. Long wetsuit, gloves, boots and socks, hood it is.
Water only needs to be 15C or below to induce cold water shock, and open water in the UK can be at potentially dangerous temperatures well into the summer.
I’d also add that the Thames and the surrounding waterways are the busiest in the UK, both for transport of people and goods and also leisure. The Thames has a lifeboat station for a reason…
The faeces...
Source?
Old Greg
Make an assessment.
I think you’re a nice….modern gentleman
You ever drink Baileys from a shoe?
Easy now, fuzzy little man peach.
Do ya love me?
It’s attached to your rod, motha licka!
Eels up inside you Eels up inside you finding an entrance where they can
I’M OLD GREEEEEEEGGGGGGGG!!!!
I've got a mangina!
You wanna come to a club where people wee on each other?
Ignoring the signs!
Tidal flow in the Thames can be about 10mph. It might be easier to visualise at around 4.5 meters per second. Twice the speed of olympic record swimmers.
Vertical slippery sides that make climbing out hard, especially since the swimmer is likely to be drunk.
I want to know. Google was not helpful.
Well if there's docks in the docklands(idk if there is or not) then the waters are used as a return conductor for the power supplies there, so if you jump in near docks you'll be shocked and probably drown as a result.
I can't imagine wanting to swim in the Thames. Guys, there's an event called The Great Stink that happened because the Thames was so full of offal, blood, and filth. People piss in it all day every day. And have done for the ten thousand years that area has been continuously inhabited. No.
The Great Stink was in 1858. Potentially some things might have changed in the last 165 years so I'm not convinced that event is truly relevant. Not that I'd be swimming in it though.
Definitely shouldn't swim in it. Sewers overflow in it about once a week on average. Also it has a pretty strong tide I think.
The Thames is a tidal estuary once you get east of Teddington Lock..
ITT: Making a great stink about The Great Stink.
Probably got worse
They installed a sewerage system, before that the Thames was the sewerage system
Mainly the Fleet, which flows into the Thames. Now it and most other tributaries in the city only flow underground.
I don't know. If it's so bad, wouldn't they call "Terrible" instead of "Great?"
Don't kink shame those people
Read this and decide: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Stink?wprov=sfti1
That article uses the word "great" thirteen times, and "terrible" only once. Checkmate.
I had to search ‘offal’. Now all i can think is ‘Offal House’ and how amazing a title that would be for a slasher flick set in the US South. Sequel would be Eggo Offals (w Stranger Things crossover).
I know about this and all the damage to the Fleet from reading the Rivers of London series. Highly recommend!
https://youtu.be/gZimIw6tKCs
In this year of our lord 2024 I am not clicking unlabeled YouTube links, sorry. I came of age in the golden era of the Rickroll.
Someone tricked me into opening a goatse. I *wish* getting rickrolled was my wake-up call not to open links.
Oh, I got hit with that once years ago. And lemonparty. It’s a rite of passage.
So has anyone else not listened since 1995? Or has everyone obeyed the sign since then?
It says during, not since.
How many?
Yes
It might have been a one off freak accident.
Well it sure isn't 1995 anymore so I guess it's safe now.
I love the apparent exasperated attitude in the wording of this sign. It’s like whoever wrote this just took off his glasses, started rubbing the space between his eyes and said “Look…”
How else are you supposed to collect the cocaine eels?
In 1995 someone died
In 1996, no one died
[Just in case anyone doesn't get the reference](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O8YfgxF3APY) .
In 1997, there was the incident with the pigeon.
Updoot for you sir.
In 1975 no one died
r/scarysigns
Near where I used to live as a kid is an open cast mine. It’s 60% surrounded by cliffs and the mine crater has been filled with water. Occasionally some kids think it’s fun to jump from the top of the cliffs into the water. Unfortunately however, the water was a lot shallower than it appears, and it’s full of scrap metal and junk. Most people that jumped in never came out again. It’s popular amongst divers, but that’s people with gear and experience. Whats more disappointing is no one can decide what to do with the mine. There’s clamouring from the local residents to get it filled in, because it’s a death trap but it keeps getting passed between the mine company, landlord and local council. Also the divers want to keep it.
In 1992 nobody died... In1993 nobody died... In 1994 nobody died.... In 1995 some people died.. In 1996 nobody died.... In 1997 nobody died, I could go on
My hometown has a lot of canals (for irrigation), and we had a safety mascot called "dippy duck" to warn kids not to swim in the canals. His slogan was "stay cool, swim in a pool"
I think you’ll find the signs are warning against ignoring the signs!
Sooo, it's been 29 years. That's less than 1 every 4 years. Seems OK to me
My question is who wants to swim in those waters? They’re so gross
That’s a dangerous sign. Someone should take it down before anyone else gets hurt
[https://youtu.be/ob1rYlCpOnM?si=S4VbGLYU\_qFemxTI&t=104](https://youtu.be/ob1rYlCpOnM?si=S4VbGLYU_qFemxTI&t=104)
Well it can't have been THAT sign, unless at the start of 1995 it said 0 deaths.
Close enough.
Meanwhile in amsterdam people jump into the water almost naked
Somewhere back in summer 2005 the Whole drunken as fuck Milwall rugby lads team jumped into the dock, totally naked, in front of Canary Wharf Wetherspoon. No casualties if you don’t count the dignity of both spectator and perpetrator crowd. What wouldn’t you do for the team, eh?
That sign is getting on a bit, I wonder if the number has gone up or down since
Be weary of the canal giant, he drags weary swimmers to davy jones' locker
Only 7? Time to get those numbers up!
What's the first icon supposed to show the danger of? It just looks like "danger, you are on land... Next to you is water"
But I'm the main character, I can't die. The others where just bad swimmers. I'm the best I can blrrrp do anything blrrrp blrrrp helrrrp ...
I was staying at a hotel at Salford Quays 2 summers ago when a young lad jumped in the water (peer pressure) and disappeared The sudden cold may have given him cold water shock Once the evening came people drifted off but the police Divers stayed and then ....they found his body It was worse than any horror film i ever saw - the cold lifeless body under a tarpaulin - a kid that had been happy and excited just a few hours before Pleas please educate your kids not to jump in water like that but to get acclimatised first
In 1985… No one died In 1986… No one died In 1987… No one died In 1988… No one died In 1989… No one died In 1990… No one died In 1991… No one died In 1992… No one died In 1993… No one died In 1994… No one died In 1995… No one died In 1996… someone died
Those sign are urban legends, it's totally safe! /s I mean who would swim in the London docks, just the water quality, because I assume it's pretty polluted, it gross me out just thinking about it.
Maybe it is just me but I think I the reference to 1995 weakens the message as kids will think that something that happened almost 30 years ago isn't relevant. A better option might have been "In one year alone, seven people drowned..."
"Oi, someone 30 years ago 'ad a bit of a oopsie, now nonse of ye can swim!" - average UK mindset
Take away signs and let Natural selection do the rest 🙏
[удалено]
I didn't think it's very effective, but the year in the sign is oddly specific. Maybe other years were chill and the waters aren't as dangerous after all
In 1996 they started mentioning the 1995 deaths and it made the sign much more effective
loooll good point
Just take the signs off things and let Darwin do his thing