Multi-agency response to man seen going into the sea at Rhyl
North Wales Police; NHS Wales ambulances; Rhyl RNLI crew and Coastguards on land and air join together to rescue a man who was seen disappearing under the water near to the lifeboat station.
On Thursday 30 November at 8.25pm, a member of the public had seen the male wading into the sea, and disappearing under the surf just to the West of the Seaquarium, and immediately dialled 999. Police who were in the area responded and called for assistance from the RNLI and coastguard. The volunteer crew of Rhyl lifeboat, and volunteer coastguard officers were paged and mustered at the lifeboat station. The weather was a near-gale onshore with heavy surf, precluding any launch of the inshore lifeboat, and the crew were preparing the All-weather lifeboat to launch when the UK coastguard at Holyhead reported that the police had located the man in the surf and had managed to get him ashore.
The lifeboat crew set off in the station's Land Rover with casualty care equipment, to rendezvous with the police. The man was unconscious when first located , but had now become conscious but showing signs of being very hypothermic. He was transported to the lifeboat station to meet up with the ambulance personnel who were arriving, as was the Coastguard helicopter from Caernarvon a few minutes later.
Ambulance paramedics and technicians, aided by lifeboat crew, made a full check up of the man, and it was decided by the ambulance team to take him to Ysbyty Glan Clwyd hospital by road. The helicopter was therefore not required, and departed back to base. The man was transferred into an ambulance and the incident was resolved at approximately 9.30pm.
Martin Jones, Rhyl RNLI Coxswain says ' This was a great multi-agency response, culminating in the man being successfully rescued and taken to safety in hospital.'
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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