Police have issued a warning after children were seen playing on a frozen pond in south London, as a drowning dog had to be rescued by a fisherman.
Royal Parks Police said a dog fell through ice at the Heron Pond in Bushy Park on Sunday, and photos have been shared of children also playing on a frozen pond in the park in Richmond.
“Do not let your children or dogs go onto the ice, it’s dangerous. Put dogs on a lead by the ponds,” police advised.
A video posted to social media shows local fisherman Jason Biggin pulling a dog out from the -3C water while clutching a fishing net on Sunday morning.
He wrote on Facebook: “A very lucky escape for this dog...on the Heron Pond at Bushy Park, as it ran across the frozen lake to chase the birds and fell through the ice. I believe that it had 30 more seconds left in it before drowning.”
Following his heroic actions, he warned others against trying to enter frozen water.
“I fish this pond regularly, I know the exact depths/underwater features, and I had waders plus a large net at hand. Do not feel that you can enter a frozen lake or water.”
The warning comes just weeks after four boys died after being pulled from a frozen lake in Solihull, West Midlands on December 11.
The boys were brothers Samuel Butler, six, and Finlay Butler, eight, their cousin Thomas Stewart, 11, and Jack Johnson, 10. They were pulled from freezing water in Babbs Mill Lake and rushed to hospital.
At the time of their deaths Superintendent Rich Harris said: “This is a tragedy beyond words and a grief that is unimaginable for the families and friends of the boys.”
The Met Office issued a fog warning for London until 11am on Monday as temperatures dipped to -8C in some parts of the capital overnight.
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Dozens of flights were cancelled at Heathrow Airport due to the fog. The airport recorded its coldest night since December 2010 and coldest January night since 1987 as temperatures dropped to minus 8.4C.
More than 80 British Airways flights were grounded causing chaos with flights to Amsterdam, Brussels, Berlin, Rome and a long haul to Miami affected, according to Heathrow’s departure boards.
Monday afternoon will remain cold and dry, with a high of just 5C. The rest of the week remains in single-digit temperatures, with mist and freezing fog expected on Tuesday morning before clearing for sunny weather.
