Football becomes focus for rescue by New Brighton RNLI lifeboat crew
RNLI volunteers diverted from training on 26 June 2018 to retrieve a ball for teens on New Brighton beach after a member of the public alerted RNLI shore crew to the risk of the lads entering the water.
RNLI New Brighton shore and lifeboat volunteers briefly abandoned training to aid a small group of up to four teenagers whose early evening kick-around on New Brighton Perch Rock beach resulted in their football floating away on the tide.
During the RNLI volunteers’ launch-and-recovery practice, a member of the public approached the lifeboat charity's shore crew asking them to watch out for a group of boys whose football had landed in the water. Although the woman – who said she has sons of a similar age – explained she had advised the lads not to go in after it, she was concerned they might do so and wanted to ensure they came to no harm.
On-shore volunteers immediately radioed RNLI Lifeboat Helm Dan Wardle who diverted from exercise to investigate. On finding the ball, it was delivered back to 15-year-old Jason from Chester. Wardle said: “We found the ball bobbing around half a mile into the River Mersey and on its way to Liverpool. It was promptly returned to Jason who seemed very pleased to have it back.
“We are always grateful to the public for their help and would like to thank the woman who so swiftly alerted our shore crew to the situation, especially as there was a fast incoming tide at the time. If Jason or his companions had entered the water we may well have had a far more serious rescue underway so we are delighted to have been able to avert that possibility.”
As soon as the football was safely back where it belonged the RNLI crew resumed their launch-and-recovery training.
To report someone either in difficulty or at risk in or near the water call 999 and ask for the Coastguard.
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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