Calshot RNLI in teenage swimmer rescue
The volunteer crew at Calshot RNLI were paged after a worried parent had called 999 with concerns for her teenage son who was out swimming.
On launching, crew, supported by two Police Marine Support Units proceeded with best speed to the last known location. With six minutes having elapsed since the time of the last known sighting, crew quickly made calculations of potential locations based on the tide and current and proceeded towards the area, where they were quickly rewarded with the sight of the casualty in the water.
Once the casualty was located, he was brought aboard the D Class Lifeboat Willett and assessed. Having established that he had no injuries, he was returned to shore to his grateful parent.
The incident took place on Thursday 3 June with the crew being paged at 2.44pm. Calshot volunteer helm Graham Burgess said; ‘At the time that we reached the casualty, he was not in any immediate danger, however the current was taking him further away from his starting point. Had he started to try to swim back towards the shore, he would have got tired very quickly as the speed of the current would be challenging for even an Olympic standard swimmer. Always take a method of communication with you out on the water, that will give you a way to call for help and if you are in difficulty, do not panic, turn onto your back and float until help arrives.’
Calshot Lifeboat Operations Manager Diane Carrier added; ‘This was a textbook search and rescue operation. Our volunteer crew trains regularly for exactly this type of scenario, and it was great to see it all come together when it really counted. There is no doubt that without assistance there could have been a very different outcome.’
Media Contacts:
Calshot Lifeboat Station volunteer Deputy Lifeboat Press Officer Justyn Leonard (07540) 920678
[email protected]
Calshot Lifeboat Station volunteer Lifeboat Press Officer Danni Strawford-Jones (07721) 694135 [email protected]
Regional Media Officer, South East and London, Paul Dunt (07785) 296252 [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 142,700 lives.
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