Teenagers in night cliff rescue drama
The Invergordon RNLI lifeboat “Douglas Aikman Smith” launched this evening to a report of 2 young females stranded on a cliff cut off by the tide, whilst out walking.
The Volunteer crew launched the All-weather Trent Class Lifeboat at 9.05pm with a crew of 7 to undertake a search for females reported somewhere on the cliffs by the village of Balintore.
Aberdeen Coastguard also requested the launch of Coastguard Helicopter ‘Rescue 951’ and local coastguard units along to assist Police Scotland with the search.
The Lifeboat made best speed up the moonlight Cromarty Firth and began the search just north of the Nigg Jetty along the rocky shoreline towards the Three Kings area.
During radio conversations with Aberdeen Coastguard it was requested that if casualties had a mobile phone to enable the torch function to aid with the search, which could be easily picked out from the darkness of the cliffs.
As the search continued the crew quickly identified a bright light approximately 50mtrs up the cliff face, and directed Rescue 951 to the location where the 2 friends were winched to the safety of the Helicopter.
With the casualties now safely on-board the Helicopter, the Volunteer Crew made their way back to the Lifeboat Berth in Invergordon’s West Harbour.
Early reports indicate that both females believed to be in mid teens had embarked on a walk to locate ‘The Well of Good Health’ locally known as ‘The Wellie” had no medical issues and were landed in Balintore to local coastguard teams.
Invergordon Lifeboat spokesperson Michael MacDonald stated “In the light of this evening’s call-out, it was a swift and well executed rescue by illuminating their location by using mobile phone lights to attract rescue crew.
The Lifeboat was refuelled and made ready for service by 10.40pm.Key facts about the RNLI
The RNLI charity saves lives at sea. Its volunteers provide a 24-hour search and rescue service around the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland coasts. The RNLI operates 238 lifeboat stations in the UK and Ireland and more than 240 lifeguard units on beaches around the UK and Channel Islands. The RNLI is independent of Coastguard and government and depends on voluntary donations and legacies to maintain its rescue service. Since the RNLI was founded in 1824, its lifeboat crews and lifeguards have saved over 146,000 lives.
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