Blue skies, offshore winds and strong tides result in more callouts for the Shee
The Sheerness RNLI inshore lifeboat attended two incidents in two hours on Tuesday 4 August after being tasked by the UK Coastguard. The first incident involved an up-turned inflatable being blown out to sea off Minster Leas and was followed by a further call to a 54 yr. old lady in difficulties on
The volunteer crew of the Sheerness RNLI inshore relief lifeboat ‘Ole Schroder’ launched at 2.04pm after a call from the UK Coastguard reported an up-turned dinghy being blown out to sea off Minster Leas and concerns had been raised whether there had been anybody in it.
The Sheppey Coastguard Rescue Team were in attendance on the beach and gave details of the dinghy’s location to the ILB crew who were on the scene at 2.17pm. Having ascertained that there was nobody with the craft a search of the immediate area was commenced. With nothing found the search area was widened from the Shingle Bank at Minster down to the beach huts off the Little Oyster. Further information reported that the dinghies owners had accidentally lost the dinghy and that they were safe ashore.
The ILB was stood down and had just arrived back on station at 3.19pm when they were again tasked by the UK Coastguard to go to the rescue of a female paddle boarder who was in trouble half a mile off the Shingle Bank, Minster.
The 54-year-old lady was on her first trip to our local waters when she got into difficulties. With the offshore wind and strong tide she was unable to get back to shore and was drifting further out to sea.
The lifeboat located the lady, who was quite distressed, at 3.38pm and immediately took her on board. With no medical attention required she was landed safely ashore along with her board.
The ILB was back on station and ready for further service at 4.31pm. Wind SW F4 with smooth seas and clear skiesKey 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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