Chiswick RNLI lifeboat rescues woman stranded in the mud

The lifeboat proceeded at speed and arrived within minutes at the mouth of the River Wandle where it enters the Thames in Wandsworth and started searching for the casualty. The woman was quickly located with the help of Police officers in Marine 2. RNLI Helm, Mark Turrell, carefully manoeuvred the lifeboat between shoals of shingle as the tide was very low.

A safe route across the foreshore was identified and an RNLI crew member and a police officer, who had previously been taken on board the lifeboat, set off towards the casualty. They found a woman in some distress, covered in mud and cold but conscious. It appeared that she had fallen from a height onto the foreshore and hurt her knee so she was unable to walk to safety.

The woman was taken on board the lifeboat and medically assessed by the crew. The lifeboat then landed her at a nearby pier were she was passed into the care of the London Ambulance Service.

RNLI Helm, Mark Turrell, said ‘It was fortunate that the woman’s cries for help were heard as she was getting cold and her location would have been covered by the rising tide before too long. Once again the versatility of the RNLI E class lifeboat was demonstrated, with a shallow draft and water jets, rather than propellors, we were able to approach close to the casualty between the shoals of shingle’

Chiswick RNLI lifeboat station is the second busiest in the UK and Ireland. Since The RNLI search and rescue service on the Thames started in 2002, Chiswick Lifeboat has attended over 3,500 incidents and rescued over 1,750 people, and dozens of dogs. The RNLI is entirely funded by public donations.

RNLI media contacts

• David Clarke RNLI Volunteer Lifeboat Press Officer (Chiswick), 07951 210500 [email protected]
• Paul Dunt, RNLI Press Officer (London/East/South East) on 0207 6207416, 07786 668825, [email protected]
• For enquiries outside normal business hours, contact the RNLI duty press officer on 01202 336789

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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