Judge brands safety failings ‘wholesale’ and ‘flagrant’ during sentencing

A FORMER police officer who led a paddleboarding tour which ended in the deaths of four people on a swollen river in Pembrokeshire has been jailed for ten years and six months.

Nerys Lloyd, 39, was sentenced at Swansea Crown Court today (Apr 22) after previously pleading guilty to four counts of gross negligence manslaughter and a health and safety offence.

The judge said Lloyd had shown a “wholesale failure” to consider basic health and safety, leading directly to the tragic incident on the River Cleddau in Haverfordwest in October 2021.

The victims—Morgan Rogers, 24, Nicola Wheatley, 40, Andrea Powell, 41, and co-instructor Paul O’Dwyer, 42—were swept over a weir in fast-flowing floodwater. Only Lloyd managed to make it through a narrow fish ramp at the centre of the weir; the rest were pulled over the edge by the powerful current.

During sentencing, the court heard that Lloyd, who had only basic paddleboarding qualifications, failed to carry out any risk assessment before advertising the trip online. She also failed to collect next-of-kin information for participants, causing delays in contacting families after the incident.

The judge said the main sentence for the four counts of gross negligence manslaughter would have been 15 years, but this was reduced by one-third due to Lloyd’s early guilty plea—resulting in ten years’ immediate custody.

For the health and safety breach, which the court said showed a “flagrant disregard” for duty of care, a further sentence of six months was added. The judge noted Lloyd’s high culpability but also took into account mitigation including her lack of previous convictions and character references.

Victims’ families gave emotional statements in court. Andrea Powell’s husband, Mark, described Lloyd’s actions as “monumental failings”, while Teresa Hall, the mother of Morgan Rogers, told Lloyd: “You guided Morgan to her death.”

Survivors also spoke out, describing the terrifying moment they were swept over the weir and calling for better regulation of paddleboarding, including quick-release safety leashes and greater public awareness of water hazards.

The Herald understands Lloyd was suspended from South Wales Police at the time of the incident after accepting a caution in a separate matter involving a fraudulent car insurance claim.

The trip, which cost £149 per person and was advertised as including overnight accommodation and two “fully qualified” instructors, ended in disaster after the group unknowingly approached the dangerous weir section of the river.

The judge concluded: “Your failure was not momentary or minor—it was total.”

A MILFORD HAVEN motorist who attempted to ease a painful toothache by drinking alcohol has been banned from driving for 17 months after he was caught almost twice over the legal limit.

Shane Barker, 36, was stopped by police at 8:15am on April 5 while driving a Ford C-Max along Freemans Way in Haverfordwest. A roadside breath test revealed he had 62 micrograms of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath. The legal limit is 35.

Barker, of Turnberry Close, Hubberston, appeared before Haverfordwest Magistrates’ Court this week, where he pleaded guilty to drink-driving.

“He’d been suffering from severe toothache that had kept him awake during the night,” his solicitor, Fenn Richards, told the court. “He took painkillers, but they didn’t help, so he drank alcohol in an attempt to relieve the pain. That morning, a friend called asking for help with a job, and he drove, unaware he was still over the limit.”

As well as being disqualified from driving for 17 months, Barker was fined £350. He was also ordered to pay a £114 victim surcharge and £85 in court costs.

A HEAVY drinking session has resulted in a three-year driving ban for skilled groundworker Darren Sullivan, after he was found behind the wheel with more than twice the legal limit of a cocaine breakdown product in his system.

Sullivan, aged 35, was stopped by officers on October 11 while driving on the A44 near Llandysul. A roadside drugs test returned a positive result, and subsequent blood analysis at the police custody suite revealed 172 micrograms of benzoylecgonine per litre of blood. The legal limit is 50.

This week, Crown Prosecutor Sian Vaughan told Haverfordwest Magistrates’ Court that the incident marked Sullivan’s second drug-driving conviction in a decade, following a similar offence in 2017.

“He finished work on the Thursday, had food and drink, but doesn’t remember consuming the cocaine,” said his solicitor, Fenn Richards.

“He went to work early the following morning and was stopped on his way home. He’d consumed a large amount of alcohol but doesn’t recall taking the drug.”

Richards added that Sullivan, of Cilsaig Road, Dafen, Llanelli, is now at risk of losing his job as a skilled groundsman due to the conviction.

Magistrates disqualified Sullivan from driving for 36 months. He was also fined £600 and ordered to pay a £240 court surcharge and £85 in prosecution costs.