PEOPLE in the Vale are being urged to stay off frozen lakes and rivers for their own safety.

The warning comes after parts of the River Severn in Worcester froze overnight as the country continues to experience minus temperatures.

As reported in today’s Journal, young people in Willersey were warned of the dangers of walking on ice when they were seen playing on a frozen pond.

Officers in south Worcestershire said they had received few reports of residents straying onto ice so far, and they want it to keep that way.

Ch Insp Jerry Reakes-Williams, head of local policing in south Worcestershire, said: “Venturing out onto frozen water is extremely dangerous and even life-threatening should the ice give way.

“Such behaviour can only be described as stupid and reckless as there is simply no way of knowing just how thick or stable any ice is, or whether it is strong enough to take your weight.

“If the ice gives way and you fall in, with temperatures so low, it could prove fatal. Our message is simple – stay off any frozen body of water for your own safety. It might seem like great fun to go out onto a frozen lake or pond and have a bit of a skate or mess about with your mates, but you are literally risking your lives for a bit of fun.

“Not only are you putting yourself in danger but potentially others who may try and rescue you, because no matter how young, fit and healthy you are, if you plunge into such cold water, your chances of survival are extremely slim.”

In the latest incident, four children aged about ten or 11 were seen playing on the frozen canal in Vines Park, Droitwich. Officers attended the scene and searched the area but the youths ran away.