THE tragedy that struck at the weekend cannot have failed to touch the hearts of all.

Five-year-old, fun-loving Lelaina Hall died on a beach at Burnham-on-Sea after becoming stuck in mud as the tide raced in.

Yesterday, the local coroner opened and adjourned an inquest into the tragedy and stated that the cause of death was drowning. The Evening News sends its condolences to the family at this time of grief.

The detailed circumstances surrounding the tragedy will become clear at the full inquest hearing, but what it emerging already is that this was known to be a danger area and that the authorities were fully aware of this.

They had recently embarked on a safety awareness campaign and had been leafleting the area.

Whatever they did, it was to no avail.

The same may be said for various other dangerous areas, some not many miles away.

Time and time again we report tragedies involving youngsters getting into trouble at notorious locations - quarries, rivers, railway lines, pools.

In most cases, there have been warning notices or signs posted at the location.

But whatever the actions, the safety warnings are either unseen or ignored.

We are sure that local authorities take their responsibilities seriously in these matters, but we must ask, are they doing all they can to make absolutely clear that all people close to these danger areas are fully aware of the risks?

If they are not then another tragedy may follow. And that's something no one wants.