A police force is under investigation over its contact with a teen couple found dead in a suspected suicide pact at a beauty spot.
Police were called to the Bothenhampton Nature Reserve after a dog walker stumbled on the bodies of the boy and girl, both in their late teens, and raised the alarm.
The couple were reportedly found in a wooded area of the beauty spot, which is near Bridport in Dorset, on Tuesday morning.
The reserve includes a disused quarry but the pair’s bodies were found in the area of a reservoir, inside the reserve.
The emergency services rushed to the rural location but nothing could be done to save the male and female.
Their identities have not yet been revealed but their families have been informed.
A spokesperson for Dorset Police confirmed that there were no suspicious circumstances surrounding the tragedy.
But they added that the force had referred itself to the police watchdog, the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), over the matter.
According to the IPOC’s website, one of the reasons a force should refer itself to them is ‘if someone had direct or indirect contact with the police when, or shortly before, they were seriously injured or died’ and where ‘the contact may have caused or contributed to the death or injury.’
The incident happened in a secluded wooded area in the village of Bothenhampton, which is about one mile from West Bay – the setting for the hit ITV crime drama Broadchurch.
Residents in the quiet neighbourhood of Wych Hill awoke on Tuesday to the sound of sirens.
The country lane leading to the beauty spot and an underground reservoir was cordoned off by police.
An ambulance, fire engine, and police cars filled the narrow lane until the early evening.
Paul Williams, who lives in one of the houses on the lane, said: “The whole road was taped off. A dog walker found them. A police community support officer came here yesterday looking for CCTV but there isn’t any.”
Another man, who wished not to be named, added: “I heard it was a suicide pact between two young people. It’s dreadful. Certainly not something you expect to happen on your doorstep.
“Police and an ambulance were here from 10am until 5pm. The fire engine had difficulty getting access (to the reserve).”
Another resident described the location where it happened as ‘beautiful and quiet’.
He said: “It’s quite worrying that something like that could happen here.”
One of the women who frequently walks her dog through the reserve said: “I was about to go for a walk with my friend. We could hear all these sirens but it was only when we started walking up the hill that we realised it was on our doorstep. It was quite a shock.
“It’s a very frequent area for dog walkers but I always get the impression there are other things going on in the woods. Lots of paths leading through the undergrowth into little dens and clearings.
“I wouldn’t go down there by myself. My dog doesn’t like it there sometimes.”
Ian Bark, the mayor of Bridport, said he was shocked to hear the news and offered his condolences to the families.
He said: “My sympathies go out to the friends and families of these young people.
“It is very sad to hear that two people who are both so young have died.”
Bothenhampton resident Joe Hackett said: “It’s an awful thing to happen.
“It’s very upsetting and the community can’t believe what has happened.
“It’s the last thing you expect to happen in such a quiet community.