Blackpool RNLI volunteers save two people cut off by the tide
Blackpool RNLI volunteers save two people cut off by the tide
Lifeboats News Release
Blackpool’s RNLI volunteers were called out at 3.30am on Monday morning (13th June) when two people were cut off by the tide at Uncle Tom’s Cabin, Northshore. The two casualties were completely surrounded by water and unable to reach safety.
Blackpool’s RNLI volunteers launched both of the station’s D class lifeboats and reached the scene within minutes.One of the casualties had tried to swim to safety and the other was stranded on a sandbank.Both of the casualties were helped into the lifeboat and taken back to the charity’s lifeboat station opposite Blackpool Tower where they were checked over by a waiting ambulance.
The incident comes just days after the RNLI launched its annual national drowning prevention campaign, Respect The Water, which aims to halve accidental coastal deaths by 2024.Almost half (48%) of coastal deaths in the UK each year are people who never planned to enter the water.Respect The Water reminds people to take care along the coastline, watch out for unexpected waves that can sweep you into the sea, stick to marked paths, keep an eye on the water and check tide times before you set out.
Blackpool RNLI volunteer lifeboat helmsman David Warburton said, ‘the people we rescued this evening were very lucky, they had been cut off by the tide and the water was rising rapidly around them.Both casualties were extremely cold and frightened, if we hadn’t reached them as quickly as we did they would have been in very serious difficulties.
Like many of the people that we rescue, they got into difficulties in the sea even though they didn’t set out to enter the water. The RNLI’s Respect The Water campaign has some brilliant advice to help people enjoy the beach and the coast safely.Please visit RNLI.org/RespectTheWater so that you know how to keep yourself safe and what to do if you do get into difficulty.’
RNLI media contacts
For more information please contact Esther Lowe Volunteer Lifeboat Press Officer,RNLI Blackpool on 01253 508603 or 07917091948.Alternatively please contact Alison Levett, RNLI Public Relations Manager, North, on 01642 750585 or 07786 668912.
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.
