Cowes lifeboat attends mud-trap drama in River Medina
Three people who became stuck in the mud in the River Medina during the early hours of this morning sparked a rescue operation involving Ventnor coastguards and Cowes RNLI lifeboat.
One of the three had earlier arrived in the area of Island Harbour from Portsmouth at the helm of the 10-metre motor-cruiser Pipin to pick up his son, thought to have attended the Island’s Music Festival at nearby Seaclose. Before the father could do so, however, the boat ran aground and when he attempted to reach the shore in the boat’s tender that too ran aground, and an oar was lost.
As he struggled to reach the shore on foot he became stuck fast in the cloying mud. The same fate also befell the son and another yachtsman who went to his aid.
Eventually all three were brought ashore by Ventnor coastguards, and the father was taken by ambulance to hospital suffering from cold. The lifeboat managed to re-float the motor-cruiser and tow it to a pontoon off Island Harbour. The tender was also recovered.
The lifeboat, which was launched just after 1 am, was away from its station for some two hours.
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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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