Man, 22, dies after crashing jet ski he bought hours earlier

A 22-year-old man has died after crashing his jet ski which he had bought just a few hours earlier.

Electrician Billy James died at Torbay Hospital after being pulled from the water off the south coast of Devon last night.

His girlfriend Morgan Schween, 19, has said she is ‘heartbroken’ as she revealed they had dreamed of building their own house and starting a family together.

It is the third fatal seaside incident in a matter of days, following the deaths of two people in separate incidents off Cornish coast on Monday.

Emergency services were called out to rescue Billy after receiving reports that a man on a jet ski had got into difficulty out at sea.

Morgan, who had been in a relationship with Billy on-and-off for two years, said he moved to Torquay from London in December.

She said: ‘I wasn’t with him when it happened. He had bought the jet ski yesterday morning and gone halves on it with a friend. He’s ridden jet skis before and always wanted his own.’

She said he had gone out on the jet ski while his friend watched from the beach, adding: ‘They saw him fall off and not get back on. They called 999 immediately. I’m not sure what happened, whether he was knocked out or what.

‘The lifeboat was called out and brought him back to shore. They did CPR on him until the ambulance arrived and took him to Torbay Hospital. That’s where he died.’

Morgan said she received a phone call at 5am this morning from Billy’s brother, who told her he had died.

She said: ‘I’m absolutely heartbroken. I had no idea he had even had an accident. I want to say a big thank you to all the emergency services who tried to save him and did what they needed to do.’

She said Billy, originally from High Wycombe, had big plans for the future, adding: ‘He moved here from London in December and wanted to set up his own business. He was an electrician.

‘He wanted to build his own house and start a family. He had it all planned out, but some things just don’t go to plan.’

‘He was an amazing boy. He never liked being inside, always wanted to be outdoors.

‘He was very loving and caring he tried to make everyone happy. I wish I could see him just one more time.’

A spokesman for Devon and Cornwall Police said: ‘A 22-year-old man died after being pulled from the sea at Teignmouth last night.

‘The man was operating a jet ski out at sea when he got into difficulty. He was rescued from the water by the RNLI who notified police around 9.40pm.

‘Ambulance also attended and carried out CPR on the man. He was taken to Torbay District Hospital where he was later pronounced deceased.

‘The man was from High Wycombe. His next of kin has been informed. The death is not being treated as suspicious and police are preparing a file for HM Coroner.’

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