Early morning rescue for Rhyl RNLI

Capsized kayak leaves teenager clinging to a mooring buoy.

Rhyl RNLI Inshore lifeboat crew had a very early start on Tuesday 7 August. A local sport fishing boat skipper was boarding his boat in Rhyl harbour at 4am to prepare for the day's fishing trips, when he heard screams of help from across the harbour, near to where the Blue bridge crosses. He contacted Holyhead Coastguard by radio, who immediately paged the volunteer crew. The Inshore lifeboat crew were on scene within 10 minutes, and located a teenager clinging on to a mooring buoy near the bridge. He had apparently come out of a kayak, which had come ashore in the harbour, and had been clinging to the mooring buoy for nearly 20 minutes. The boy was taken on board the lifeboat and rushed back to the boathouse. He was very cold and wet and showed signs of being severely hypothermic. An ambulance crew arrived and took the youth to Glan Clwyd hospital. The lifeboat crew completed the service at 4.35am.

Coxswain Martin Jones of Rhyl RNLI says " This teenager was a very lucky person. If the skipper of the fishing boat had not been on scene, there could have been a very different outcome. The skipper is to be congratulated on his speedy calling of the emergency services".

The teenager and his 2 friends had been camping near to the harbour, and decided to go for a boat journey in the middle of the night. The kayak was recovered ashore by local coastguard volunteers, and the 2 friends were interviewed by coastguards and police officers as to their decision to go afloat at that time of day.