Off-duty RNLI lifeguard helps an unconscious man in Skegness

RNLI Lifeguard Supervisor, Arun Gray was heading home from a night out when he spotted a crowd gathering around a man who was lying on the ground. His lifesaving instincts kicked in and he rushed to help.

The man, thought to be in his early twenties, was drifting in and out of consciousness and experiencing seizures.

Although the casualty’s friends had phoned for an ambulance, they gratefully accepted Arun’s assistance, as they were unaware of how to help him.

The charity’s lifeguard performed a casualty care check before ensuring that the man’s airways were open. He then supported his head with a jumper and kept him in a stable condition until the paramedics arrived.

After receiving further treatment in hospital he has since been discharged.

Arun, explained: ‘As an RNLI lifeguard your lifesaving skills are transferrable, even when you’re off-duty, the instinct to help someone never leaves you. I could see that the man was in severe difficulty and that his friends were panicking and didn’t know how to help.

‘I’m really pleased that I was passing by and was able to step in. The extensive casualty care training that our charity provides us with ensured that I was able to assess the scene quickly and ensure that it didn’t escalate into a life-threating situation. Thankfully, I was able to keep the man in a stable condition until the paramedics arrived.’

RNLI lifeguards will start their daily patrols on Skegness and Mablethorpe beaches from 27 May until 10 September. A seven-day-a-week service will then commence at Ingoldmells and Sutton-on-Sea from 8 July until 10 September.*

RNLI Picture caption

The photograph shows RNLI Lifeguard Supervisor, Arun Gray. Credit: RNLI.

Notes to editors

* As RNLI lifeguards need to be physically on the beach during the patrolled hours, ready to respond to emergencies and prevent accidents, the RNLI can’t rely on volunteers to provide this cover seven- days- a -week. Local authorities part fund the RNLI’s costs, which helps to meet the cost of lifeguard wages.

The daily patrols during the season operate from 10am to 6pm.

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For more information, please contact Clare Hopps, RNLI Press Officer North, on 07824 518641 or at [email protected]

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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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