Happy Ewe Year!

The volunteer crew were paged at 1:10pm on Monday 31 December after a dog had fallen over a cliff between Tresaith and Aberporth. The Audrey LJ inshore lifeboat launched from New Quay with Simon Rigby as helm, joined by crew members Ben Davies and Ellis Jones, and travelled south in search of the animal.

Murray the dog had been walking on the coastal path with his owners when he fell over 50ft from the cliffs.

Simon said, “We had a bumpy run down the coast but luckily we were able to locate the dog quickly. He was in a lot of pain and we had to extract him from a small cove between Aberporth and Tresaith.

“The poor dog was not happy and we had to be careful as we realised he had broken one of his front legs. We got him on board and handed him over to the Cardigan Coastguard rescue team on Aberporth beach where Murray was reunited with his owners.”

On their way back to New Quay the crew were tasked to a second incident by Milford Haven Coastguard, this time to a sheep that had fallen over a cliff near Llangrannog. With concerns that the owner may attempt a rescue, New Quay RNLI inshore lifeboat was requested to assist.

Crew member Ben Davies said, “We couldn’t believe that the sheep had fallen over 80ft but had survived completely unscathed. She must have landed in the water and swum to nearby rocks where we found her stranded.

“I never thought when I joined the lifeboat crew I would be lassoing a sheep and getting the poor thing into a boat. Luckily the sheep was very calm on board but we had to tie her down for her and our safety.”

The sheep had a trip in the lifeboat to Llangrannog where she was handed over to the New Quay Coastguard team.

The RNLI is the charity that saves lives at sea…whether they are humans, dogs or even sheep!

Notes to editors

RNLI media contact

For more information contact Kate Williams, New Quay Lifeboat Press Officer on [email protected] or 07786 550054. Alternatively contact Eleri Roberts, RNLI Media Officer on 01745 585162 / 07771 941390.

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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Contacting the RNLI - public enquiries

Members of the public may contact the RNLI on 0300 300 9990 (UK) or 1800 991802 (Ireland) or by email.