HEALTH and safety chiefs are to review the need for a 2m-high fence at Mistley Quay.

The Health and Safety Executive made the announcement in light of a rescue operation which was hampered when rescuers had to remove a section of the barrier.

Campaigners who staged a protest on Monday, after the rescue, welcomed the news.

Kate Worsley, Free the Quay spokesman, said: “It is about time. That’s brilliant news. If it means they can talk to the quay owners and find a more sensible and safer solution, that’s fantastic.

“The HSE never asked for a fence on this scale in the first place. If it can find a solution that satisfies health and safety, we will be happy with it.”

The rescue on Saturday afternoon saw three adults and a teenage boy plucked from the River Stour after their boat sank.

Passing yachts pulled three of the party to safety, but one stayed with the boat before the Harwich lifeboat took them to the quayside.

Part of the steel fence had to be unbolted by coastguards and residents before the lifeboat could moor up and meet an ambulance. The fence was put up last September by Trent Wharfage, which was asked by the Health and Safety Executive to install safety measures.

A Health and Safety Executive spokesman said: “In light of what has happened, the HSE is reviewing the matter.”

When asked how much power the Health and Safety Executive would have in any ruling it made, the spokesman added: “Any organisation would have to follow HSE instruction.”

The Gazette contacted Trent Wharfage yesterday but no one was available for comment.