Student, 20, drowned after getting sucked into underwater vortex while

A university student drowned after being caught in an underwater vortex while diving off the south coast, an inquest heard today.

Emily Sherwin, 20, was diving with friends off Old Harry Rocks near Swanage, Dorset, when she got caught in a strong current 22ft below the surface on July 23 last year.

Her dive buddy Beth Pryor described how she too got caught in the vortex and tried to signal to her friend to return to the surface – but she didn’t respond.

Ms Pryor quickly lost contact and sight of Ms Sherwin before she made it to the surface.

A huge air and sea search was launched to try to find the missing student, but her body was never recovered.

She had turned 20 just one day earlier.

At an inquest into her death today, Dorset Coroner’s Court was told Ms Sherwin had just finished her first year studying marine conservation at Plymouth University, where she was also undertaking diving training.

She had returned home from university for the summer holidays last year and got a job at Parkstone Yacht Club near her home in Poole.

Ms Pryor had invited Ms Sherwin out on the dive as part of an eight-strong crew who head half a mile from Poole Quay to Old Harry Rocks.

Emily Sherwin was diving off the coast of Dorset when she was caught in an underwater vortex

A major search operation was launched for the missing student but her body has never been recovered

What is an underwater vortex?

An underwater vortex is a column of rotating water that can exert an enormous pull on a swimmer and wrench them deeper and deeper into the water.

The phenomenon – similar to a whirlpool – can occur at sea when rising and falling tides interact, leading to a strong central downdraft in a swirling pattern.

Vortices can create powerful downward forces, which can pose significant risk to divers and swimmers.

This is particularly the case because they can be very hard to spot, particularly from the surfaces and they can also form rapidly in oceans.

Getting caught in a vortex can cause disorientation or dislodge diving equipment as they are pulled deeper below the waves.

They were permitted to dive 59ft below the surface from their 8m-long RIB named Rebellion.

At 5.52pm the friends entered the water and descended, the court heard.

Ms Pryor said in a statement that they were caught in an underwater vortex and found themselves being spun around at a depth of around 22ft.

She said: ‘We both went down below the surface and we were horizontal facing each other and we were holding each other’s arms.

‘I signaled to Emily that something was wrong and pointed to my ears and gave her the signal to go back up. I did this two or three times.

‘At this point we got caught in a vortex and started to spin around. I wasn’t able to check my dive computer due to the spinning. I just felt disorientated.

‘We held each other’s arms and I signaled to go up but I did not see her do it back.

‘Visibility was poor and I could only see about one metre. I could see Emily was vertical and not rising. At this point things get a bit hazy as it all happened so fast.

‘She was vertical and her regulator was out of her mouth. She was sinking at the time and I attempted to reach down but that was not possible. At this point I could feel some water seeping into my mask.

‘We hit the bottom of the seabed hard and I was unable to see Emily. I ascended to the surface quickly and spoke to Kevin (Craddock), the skipper, who signaled the mayday and then other boats and the rescue helicopter came to the area.’

The skipper of the dive boat issued a Mayday and RNLI lifeboat crews from Swanage and Poole searched the area until 9pm when they were stood down.

Ms Sherwin lived with her parents, Charles, a dentist, and Ellen, a consultant oncologist, on a leafy street close to Poole Harbour.

She had attended the private Talbot Heath School in Bournemouth before going to Plymouth for university.

Her mother said Ms Sherwin’s hero was Sir David Attenborough and she loved diving, saying that being in the water was her ‘safe space’.

She continued: ‘Emily was involved in the sailing society at Plymouth University and started there in 2023.

‘She had loved her first year at university and was looking forward to returning to move in with her friends in September.

‘She had taken a gap year after leaving Talbot Heath School and was excited to now be in the same year as Beth.

The inquest into Ms Sherwin’s death took place despite her body never being found

‘She had been celebrating her birthday the night before and had planned a big birthday party for that Friday.

‘She was fit and healthy and was passionate about the natural world and especially sea life. Her hero was David Attenborough.

‘She started diving in 2023 and immediately loved it as she felt a sense of calm in the water. She described it as her safe space.’

The Dorset coroner Richard Middleton gave a narrative conclusion to her death, stating that her cause of death remains unknown.

However it was confirmed that she died as a result of being caught in an underwater current while diving off Old Harry Rocks.

Mr Middleton said: ‘Emily got caught in a vortex and became separated from her diving buddy and failed to come to the surface.

‘There was an extensive search but she could not be found.

‘My narrative conclusion is that Emily died as a consequence of being caught in an underwater current while being out on a leisure SCUBA dive.

‘I must give my deepest sympathies and consequences to her friends and family, especially her parents, her sister and her uncle.’

Ms Sherwin’s parents thanked Mr Middleton for his help and sent their utmost thanks to everyone who had helped with the search operation.