Son relives horror of watching his father and two friends drown in the River Esk

A distraught son who was photographing his father and two friends as they attempted to drive across a swollen river ford in a Land Rover told how he fought in vain to save them.

Horrified Rob Forbes watched as the 4×4 was swept off submerged cobbles at the crossing point, an inquest heard.

The Land Rover Discovery driven by his father Les Forbes, 70, also contained friends Scott Thomas Daddy, 28, and Kenneth Patrick Hibbins, 59.

Mr Forbes Jr jumped into the freezing River Esk, near Glaisdale in the North York Moors National Park, and tried to enter the vehicle as it was carried away by the torrent.

The 4×4 was in around 9ft of water and Mr Forbes Jr was submerged to chest-height.

Rob Forbes, pictured, only survived because his father asked him to stand on a footbridge and take photos of the crossing

Scott Thomas Daddy (pictured) was described as ‘a loving son, brother, uncle and boyfriend’

Leslie Forbes (left), from the East Yorkshire area, and Kenneth Patrick Hibbins (right), known as Patrick, from York, also died

The recovered vehicle being removed from the River Esk near Glaisdale, North Yorkshire

He doggedly clung onto a ladder above the rear bumper, struggling to open the doors, until the vehicle was completely submerged and he was pulled barely conscious to safety by firefighters.

The car had floated downstream and sunk around 100m from the ford, near a farm, and its three occupants drowned.

Attempting to recall the harrowing tragedy on December 28, Mr Forbes Jr was still so traumatised he was initially unable to speak and appeared to be having breathing difficulties.

He told how his father attempted to cross the river, which was three-and-a-half feet higher than usual, but said: ‘Before I knew it, the vehicle was in the water.’

Mr Forbes Jr jumped in and was able to reach out, grab the ladder and cling on.

But Mr Forbes Jr said that while clinging on, he heard Mr Daddy shout ‘I will smash a window’.

He recalled: ‘The water level was just below the back window. Items were bobbing up and down in the vehicle.

‘I (got) my hand on the back door and lift the catch. I managed to get it open about ten inches but it was too heavy and closed again.’

Mr Forbes Jr continued to cling on because he ‘could not face leaving the car and letting the lads down’.

The vehicle had to be pulled from the river by a tractor following the tragedy 

The four-by-four would have gone past this sign warning the ford was ‘unsuitable for motor vehicles’, locals said

An aerial view of the jeep being pulled from the river after three men were found dead at the scene

‘The car was still not submerged. I could hear someone banging with a fist or boot,’ he said.

‘Then the vehicle went down.’

Mr Forbes Jr remembers passing a farmer attempting to reach him with a rope and thought he could reach out and grab a tree if swept away.

He did not remember much after seeing the emergency services arrive.

Accident investigators later found the group were trapped because the vehicle electrics were knocked out so the windows would not open, while a metal dog cage blocked escape at the rear.

The inquest, held at Northallerton Coroner’s Court in North Yorkshire, was told the group were experienced green lane driving enthusiasts, who use 4×4 vehicles to explore tracks and unsurfaced roads.

Mr Forbes Jr told how they were in a convoy of three which had crossed several fords on the morning of December 28 before approaching the one near Glaisdale.

It was not part of the original plans – drawn up by Mr Forbes sr for the East Riding 4×4 Club’s New Year Christmas Run, but their route had to be altered due to flooding.

Les Forbes’ Discovery was fitted with a snorkel to prevent water entering the engine and chunky off-road tyres – so, fatefully, the group continued into the ford, with Mr Forbes Jr getting out to take pictures.

4×4 enthusiast Robert Gibb, whose group decided not to make the crossing, said: ‘I got out (of) the car and had a look at the ford. There were white waves breaking over where you actually drove through.

The 4×4 vehicle being recovered from the River Esk near Glaisdale after it had been ‘swept away’ 

Emergency services scrambled to the scene near Glaisdale (pictured) following reports of a serious incident involving a vehicle

‘Before I could voice my concerns Les started moving forward.’

The submerged vehicle was eventually towed to the bank by tractor and the occupants recovered.

Post mortem examinations confirmed all three men drowned and tests showed no trace of drugs of alcohol in Les Forbes’ system.

Recording misadventure conclusions for Mr Forbes sr, from East Yorkshire, Mr Daddy, a painter and decorator from Hull, and Mr Hibbins, a landscape gardener, Coroner Jon Heath found the men’s vehicle turned into a watery tomb.

He said: ‘All the deceased were trying to get out but without success. 

‘They could not open the windows because they would not operate when the engine stopped.

‘They could not open the doors due to the pressure of the water and could not break the windows.’