“YOU just can’t comprehend something like this happening now.”

Those are the words of former-Forres School boy Seb Warner, now 44, as he recounts a harrowing event that claimed the lives of five school boys on May 13, 1955.

Robin Ardagh, Richard Birch, Jeremy Dennis, Davis North-Lewis and Jason Oliver were between 12 and 13 year’s old when their lives were claimed after an unexploded Second World War land mine they found buried in the sand at Swanage Beach, which they originally thought could be a can of Spam, detonated.

The boys were part of Forres School – now Purbeck View School – and while a plaque exists at the site to commemorate the boys, there are concerns their story could be lost as the site was put up for sale earlier this year following the closure of the school in 2023.

Mr Warner, who alongside other pupils remembered the boys each November when he attended Forres School from 1988 to 1993, organised for a new plaque to be installed at Purbeck View next to the war memorial to ensure the boys’ legacy lives on in a prominent place.

Forres School rugby team in 1954, David North-Lewis back row second from left Picture: Seb Warner

His campaign picked up steam as ex-Forres pupils and the Swanage community chipped in to his online crowd funder to pay for the memorial which has raised £1,805.

The plaque will now be created by Swanage firm Purbeck Stone and there are plans to officially unveil the plaque in its new location 70 years to the day of the tragic accident.

The special ceremony will feature special guests as the survivors, now in their 80s, will hopefully be in attendance.

The location for the new plaque Picture: Seb Warner

Mines were placed on beaches in Britain during the Second World War as part of preparations for a potential Nazi invasion.

While efforts were made to disarm and dispose of the mines, not all were accounted for following the end of the war.

Swanage Beach was given the all clear by officials prior to the explosion.

Mr Warner said: “Whenever we went on our school walks to the beaches we were told to not touch anything that looks out of place and we always knew where the boys were killed, which if you’re looking out to sea in Swanage its way out to the left under the cliffs.”

Era of the stiff upper lip

Mr Warner has been in contact with the survivors to organise the memorial, but he said they received little support following the tragedy.

“When I spoke to the survivors, they said that on that day those who weren’t part of the scouts or cubs at the school instead went on a walk on the beach with one of the teachers, which was about 18 pupils,” he said.

“The beach had been ‘cleared’ and officially signed off as clear of all unexploded devices but some boys found a metal object under the cliff that they thought could have been leftover rations, but they couldn’t get it open despite using a shoehorn and throwing rocks at it.

“Then – bang. The explosion was colossal, I think an article in the newspaper the next day said it was a 40ft mushroom sand cloud that went straight up.

“One boy was blown to pieces. Three boys died instantly and the other was injured and later died in hospital.

“The other boys were blown over and received shrapnel wounds.

“The headmaster at the time had to go down to the beach to identify the bodies and tell the parents.

“It was the era of the stiff upper lip though, and there was not any aftercare for the boys.

He added: “I’ve always thought that since the closure of Forres School, the boys needed a memorial in a prominent position to show that we haven’t forgotten about them.

“It’s taken me quite a few years to get to this position, but Swanage Town Council approved it and mayor Tina Foster was brilliant in making this a reality.

“It feels almost meant to be, as there’s this stone plinth in front of the war memorial and there’s an empty space which is where we want to put the memorial.”

Seb Warner, who has thanked everyone for their donations to the memorial plaque Picture: Seb Warner

Mr Warner said the survivors – one of them being the ex MP for Salisbury, Robert Key- have never spoken about the accident and the boys were expected to carry on as normal.

“You just can’t comprehend something like this happening now,” he said.

“If it happened now it would be an unimaginable tragedy that would get national attention for weeks, but back then things were swept under the carpet and not talked about.

“I’ve spoken to three of the boys who there that day that survived, all now in their 80s, and they’ve never spoken about it because after the tragedy they just went on as normal with no support.

“There were five empty seats at breakfast the following morning and the children were just expected to carry on as if that was normal.”

The old memorial plaque at the former Forres School site Picture: Seb Warner

“What’s to stop this happening again?”

Studland Bay could still harbour some ordinances as a shell found on Middle Beach was detonated by a bomb disposal team in 2022, and other remnants of the war have also been found by walkers since.

Mr Warner said he will appeal to the National Trust, who manage Studland Bay to install more warning signs of the potential dangers that could still be lurking in the sand.

He said that due to the Trust’s policy of letting Middle Beach erode naturally, there is an increased likelihood that undiscovered mines could turn up that were previously buried in the sand over time.

“It happened then, and it could easily happen again,” he said.

“The National Trust have let Studland Bay erode naturally over the years – they’re not putting in any more sea defences – and this is uncovering things that have been buried in the dunes, especially at Middle Beach.

A bomb was detonated on Middle Beach in Studland Picture: Swanage Coastguard

“If its a Second World War grenade, mortar or shell, most people know what they look like and won’t touch it, but the thing is with this land mind is that it looks like a little biscuit or cake tin which is what the boys thought.

“12-year-old boys aren’t much different now than they were in 1955 so what’s to stop this tragedy happening again?

“I want to speak to the National Trust as there has to be some signage warning over the potential dangers – alongside some images of what these things look like so this doesn’t happen again.

He added: “There’s no question about it – there’s still plenty of devices there.

Signs like this warn of the dangers Picture: National Trust

“There was a heath fire on the ferry road about two summers ago, and obviously you would hear an explosion every few minutes as these things were being burnt and blown up.

“You’ll never find them all. Obviously they’re buried deep down, but this is why I’m concerned about the erosion.”

The National Trust said some signs of unexploded ordinance are in place and when landslips occur, staff monitors the area for any potential hazards.

If devices are spotted at Studland Bay, people are told not to touch or remove it and instead note the location using the What Three Words app and report it immediately to a member of staff or call 01929 450500 or the police on 999.