Game of "wave dodging" should never, ever, be allowed to be played!

Cullercoats, according to Wikipedia, is an urban area of North East England, sitting between Tynemouth and Whitley Bay. As there is a semi-circular sandy beach with cliffs and caves, and the village is a popular destination for day-trippers.  Here's a news from Cullercoats a couple of days ago in ChronicleLive.co.uk reported by Alastair Craig:

A GAME of "wave dodging" ended in a dramatic helicopter rescue after a 12-year-old boy plunged into the swollen sea at Cullercoats, North Tyneside.

The lad and two of his pals were on rocks near the shoreline, encouraging each other to get as close to the crashing waves as they could.

But one freak swell washed one of the friends into the heavy sea, which had been whipped up by high winds.

Onlookers dialled 999 at about 3.45pm when they spotted the boy struggling to stay above the water.
Police control operators contacted Humber Coastguard, who co-ordinated a three-pronged rescue.
A Sea King helicopter was scrambled from RAF Boulmer on the Northumberland coast, while the Cullercoats Lifeboat and Tynemouth Volunteer Life Brigade launched mercy boats.

and: 

Today the boy is recovering from the effects of 15 minutes spent in the bitter North Sea but his condition is not life threatening.

A spokeswoman for the Coastguard service said the lad is lucky to be alive and warned other youngsters to respect the dangers of the sea. “There were multiple 999 calls reporting a person struggling in the water after being washed away in the high waves,” she said.

I have never heard of "wave dodging" as a game before and  I must admit that I am surprised to know that there is such silly thing is being played and more depressed to learn that it is even allowed to be played.  This case two days ago was a relatively lucky one.  Now here happens to be a more tragic news from 5 years ago in U.K. DailyMail:

A 13-year-old boy who died after being swept into the raging North Sea while playing a deadly wave-dodging game of "chicken" with friends loved playing outdoors, his mother said today. 

Mark Langton was with a few friends when he was caught by a wave and quickly carried 200 yards into deeper water where he was battered against rocks and boulders at a sea break off the coast at Hendon, Sunderland. 

His death on April 10, the first day of the Easter school break, prompted a warning from safety watchdogs who said that bored children were dicing with death in search of adventure. 

Young friends said they had heard how Mark was playing a game of "chicken" in which youngsters try to dodge waves at the very last minute. 

The teenager's mother, Beverley Steel, paid tribute to her son saying he loved playing outdoors and was not afraid of trying anything.

I can not help feeling sorry for that poor mother who paid tribute to her lost son but not seemed to have really taught him about being prudent.  Now here, again, is another tragic news from BBC 7 years ago:

A 12-year-old girl has died after a game she was playing with friends on a beach in Northumberland went wrong. 

Jade Anderson was playing a dangerous "wave dodging" game with three pals when a wave swept them into the sea. 

Another girl is in hospital while two others were released after being treated for hypothermia. 

Fishermen saved two of the girls before Pc Darren Purvis arrived on the scene, who dived into the water to pull the remaining two to safety.

So please, please, please, parents, please at least teach your children about prudent and safety near water.  Let's not unduly burden the brave rescuers as they are already busy enough on their daily rescue works.  A game of "wave dodging" should not ever being played at any time and at any place!