Photo of tourists on black rocks at Peggys Cove raises safety concerns

CTV Atlantic: Tourists get stuck at Peggy's Cove A photo circulating on social media shows four people stuck on the black rocks of Peggys Cove. CTV's Ron Shaw has more.

It appears a safety first campaign at Peggys Cove isn’t getting through to everyone after a photo circulating on social media showed four people walking along the black rocks.

Photographer Warren Hoeg posted the picture on Facebook after visiting the area at sunset Monday night.

“Looked down, just below the lighthouse on the black rocks, which were covered with a sheet of ice at the time, and there's four people down there," said Hoeg.

Hoeg says at first, he couldn’t believe his eyes. He was then concerned that the four wouldn’t be able to make it back to safety.

“I would say they struggled for 15, 20 minutes at the most," said Hoeg.

There are several signs along the rocks warning tourists to stay off the dangerous area. With a string of drowning deaths in recent years, the number of signs has increased.

The owner of the on-site restaurant says he doesn't see what more can be done except to continue to publicize the dangers.

Those who have seen the granite rocks in heavy weather say nowhere is safe during a big storm, especially on the edge of the sea.

With files from CTV Atlantic’s Ron Shaw.