A paddleboard tour company owner has admitted to gross negligence manslaughter after the deaths of four people.
Paul O’Dwyer, Andrea Powell, Morgan Rogers and Nicola Wheatley died while paddleboarding on the River Cleddau, in Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire, in October 2021.
Nerys Bethan Lloyd, 39, a former police officer from Port Talbot, is the former owner of Salty Dog, the company operating the tour that the four, and four others who survived, were taking.
The company has since been dissolved.
At Swansea Crown Court on Wednesday, she also pleaded guilty to one offence under the Health and Safety at Work Act.
The case was previously delayed due to “an issue with legal aid”.
Lloyd will remain on bail until her sentencing in April.
Following the plea hearing, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said the paddleboard tour on 30 October 2021 occurred despite “heavy flooding and severe weather warnings” being in place.
It added “the river was running fast and the weir was in an extremely hazardous condition”, and three of the participants became trapped after being pulled over the top of the Haverfordwest Town Weir.
Mr O’Dwyer, who was an instructor on the tour, initially exited the river safely, but then re-entered the water in an attempt to rescue the others.
The four victims died due to drowning.
The CPS added Lloyd did not have a suitable qualification, and her planning and supervision was inadequate, with the prosecution following a joint investigation by Dyfed-Powys Police and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).
Lisa Rose, specialist prosecutor with the CPS special crime division, added it was “an avoidable tragedy”.
“Despite going to check the state of the river before departing on the tour, Nerys Lloyd failed to inspect the weir,” she said.
“The majority of participants had limited experience, and Lloyd was not qualified to take paddleboarders out in such hazardous conditions.
“There was no safety briefing or formal risk assessments, and the participants were not advised that they would be traversing a weir or instructed on options to get out of the water.
“Final decisions to continue with the event were Lloyd’s decision, and as a result she held complete and entire responsibility.
“I hope these convictions provide some sense of justice for those affected and our thoughts remain with the families and friends of the victims at this time.”
