'I wish I had died' says man paralysed after 25ft 'tombstoning' leap into just 36 inches of water

Steven Andrews, 25, says he wished he had died after the drunken stunt in which he jumped 25ft into three feet of water.

Yesterday, his devastated mother warned others against the activity, which has already caused several deaths across Britain.

Pam Bond, 44, said: "The first words he said to me when he woke up were, "I'm paralysed, Mum. I want to die".

"My son's life and dreams are completely ruined. It's heart-wrenching.

"I'm in total shock. No mother should have to see their son in hospital unable to move. He's paralysed from the neck down for life.

"He's good with his hands and he can fix and make anything.

"He keeps saying to me, "Mum, I'm a vegetable".

"How many people need to be hurt before people realise the dangers of tombstoning?"

Coastguards and emergency services have issued frequent warnings about tombstoning, in which participants jump into water from cliffs, walls and piers.

Mr Andrews, a builder from Plymouth, leapt off cliffs at Sharrow Beach in Whitsand Bay, Cornwall, on Sunday.

He downed six vodkas in a nearby pub to pluck up the courage to jump, then ignored coastguards who saw him on the cliff top and warned him to keep away.

A fast-ebbing tide had reduced the sea to a depth of just 3ft and he landed on sharp rocks, breaking his neck and damaging his spine in front of his horrified girlfriend Katie Hart, 22.

Three lifeguards rushed to help and carefully removed him from the water.

He is now in intensive care in Derriford Hospital, Plymouth.

He said there yesterday: "I wish I could turn back the clock but now I'm just going to have to try to deal with it.

"I want to warn people that you should never mess around on rocks or cliffs or anywhere dangerous near water. "It can happen so quickly. In a matter of seconds my life changed for ever."

Another young man was badly hurt in a tombstoning accident on the same day as Mr Andrews.

Sonny Wells, 20, from Waterlooville, Hampshire, jumped into water less than 4ft deep from South Parade Pier in Southsea.

Doctors treating him in Southampton General Hospital's neurological unit have told him he may never walk again.

An RNLI spokesman said: "Jumping from a height into the sea, especially when unfamiliar with the vicinity and tides, is extremely dangerous and we strongly urge everyone not to tombstone."