Abandon shipment.
GPS systems can save drivers plenty of headaches. But an Amazon delivery driver in the United Kingdom adhered to their GPS and steered a van directly into the mud.
In a Facebook post, officials with HM Coastguard Southend said they responded to a call after the Amazon delivery vehicle was stuck in a “dangerous mudflat” on The Broomway in Essex, the BBC reported.
The area is located at the mouth of the Thames estuary where it meets the North Sea. The Broomway is a 600-year-old, 6-mile “walking” path out into the estuary.
“I thought someone had just knocked up a photograph,” local guide Kevin Brown told The Guardian after seeing it online.
It was real.
The driver apparently drove onto the mudflat in the darkness on Feb. 14, according to the newspaper. The driver was attempting to access Foulness Island and the usual entrance -- a road bridge -- was closed for the night.
“The Broomway route is not for vehicles and should only be walked on with a guide who knows the mud flats,” HM Coastguard Southend posted. “It is an extremely dangerous area and is on MOD (Ministry of Defence) property only free to access when the firing ranges are not active and barrier is open.”
“They go so far down that muddy track until it gets impassable,” Roger Burroughs, a farmer from Foulness, told The Guardian. “And then they try to turn around. That’s where they get stuck.”
The driver had more issues, as the tide was coming in, according to the newspaper. That meant the driver had to abandon the van and walk back to shore.
Amazon said it was “aware” of the situation and was “investigating,” the BBC reported. A spokesperson for Amazon told CNN that “the driver is safe and the van retrieved.”
According to parish council records viewed by the news organization, 100 people have died on The Broomway, with the last known death occurring in 1919.
The Broomway got its name as a track marked by sticks with shrubs tied to them – the brooms, The Guardian reported. They were stuck into the mud, which were placed 30 paces apart along its length.
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