Inquest: Mother drowned trapped by tide on icy Lowestoft path

Saffron Cole-Nottage, a 32-year-old mother of three from Lowestoft, Suffolk, drowned after slipping and falling headfirst between boulders on the town's seafront on February 2 last year, an inquest has heard.

The incident occurred as Cole-Nottage walked her dog with her 11-year-old daughter along the coastal path beneath the embankment around 7 p.m. Witnesses described the surface as icy due to dropping temperatures, likening it to an "ice rink." She became wedged between the rocks, with her legs visible above the surface, as the incoming tide rose.

Passersby, including Ian Jones and Alex Singleton-Dent, rushed to the scene after hearing screams from Cole-Nottage and her daughter. Jones told the inquest he and another man tried pulling her free but "just couldn't pull her with enough force." Singleton-Dent said the girl pleaded for help, and they struggled for what felt like 10 minutes as the tide crept in. Cole-Nottage's daughter also attempted to assist, later stating in evidence that her mother was screaming for rescue and that the wait for help felt like "an eternity." One witness recalled realizing she had become unresponsive as water levels rose.