St Ives volunteer lifeboat crew rescue unwell man in challenging conditions
St Ives all weather lifeboat Nora Stachura was launched on the morning of Saturday 7 April following a request from Portreath Coastguard cliff team to assist them in removing an unwell man from a vessel inside Portreath harbour.
St Ives lifeboat, under the command of coxwain Robert Cocking launched at 11.03am and headed towards Portreath arriving in 20 minutes.
The conditions inside Portreath harbour were challenging with seas being deflected from the harbour walls making the sea state unpredictable.
The coxwain put the lifeboat alongside the vessel and the casualty was assessed. A serious skin condition made handling the patient very difficult and in order to minimise any discomfort a stretcher was used to transfer the man to the St Ives lifeboat.
Once the casualty was secure the lifeboat made towards St Ives landing the man at Smeatons Pier at 12.16am where Cornwall Fire and Rescue first responders and an Ambulance was waiting. Following assessment the man chose to return home with a family member and was not admitted to hospital.
During the ‘service call’ debrief David Holland-Kemp was commended for his outstanding casualty care.
RNLI media contactsFor further information, please contact the RNLI's Regional Media Officer Carrie Garrad on 07786 668847 or Carrie_Garrad@rnli.org.uk
RNLI online
For more information on the RNLI please visit www.rnli.org.uk. News releases and other media resources, including RSS feeds, downloadable photos and video, are available at the RNLI Press Centre www.rnli.org.uk/press
Key facts about the RNLI
The Royal National Lifeboat Institution is the charity that saves lives at sea. Our volunteers provide a 24-hour search and rescue service in the United Kingdom and Ireland from 238 lifeboat stations, including four along the River Thames and inland lifeboat stations at Loch Ness, Lough Derg, Enniskillen and Lough Ree. Additionally the RNLI has more than 1,000 lifeguards on over 240 beaches around the UK and operates a specialist flood rescue team, which can respond anywhere across the UK and Ireland when inland flooding puts lives at risk.
The RNLI relies on public donations and legacies to maintain its rescue service. As a charity it is separate from, but works alongside, government-controlled and funded coastguard services. Since the RNLI was founded in 1824 our lifeboat crews and lifeguards have saved at least 140,000 lives. Volunteers make up 95% of the charity, including 4,600 volunteer lifeboat crew members and 3,000 volunteer shore crew. Additionally, tens of thousands of other dedicated volunteers raise funds and awareness, give safety advice, and help in our museums, shops and offices.
Learn more about the RNLI
For more information please visit the RNLI website or Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. News releases, videos and photos are available on the News Centre.
Contacting the RNLI - public enquiries
Members of the public may contact the RNLI on 0300 300 9990 or by email.
The RNLI is a charity registered in England and Wales (209603) and Scotland (SC037736). Charity number 20003326 in the Republic of Ireland