Rhyl RNLI volunteers in early morning call

The weather was beyond the limits of the Inshore lifeboat, so only the All-weather lifeboat was launched, getting to sea at about 4.15am. This was to assist local police and teams from Rhyl; Llandudno; Flint and Bangor coastguards looking for a person on the waterline. Police initially said the person's mobile phone was near Kinmel Bay, and so the lifeboat was requested to search between Rhyl harbour and Llandulas. The coastguard rescue helicopter was also diverted from an existing task to look for the person.
The search continued for a few hours, with land-based teams searching the dunes and promenades in the area.
There then came a message from police to the Coastguard co-ordinating centre at Holyhead, that the mobile phone signal had been narrowed to an area inland of the area. Police went to that location, and found the person safe and well. The lifeboat stood by until police confirmed this was the person being looked for, and so Rhyl lifeboat was stood down to return to station by 10.20am, being at sea for over six hours.
Coxswain Martin Jones said ' The RNLI and its volunteer crews were happy to assist other agencies to search. We are glad the person was found safe and well'.
The launch came only hours after the crew had held their 'Annual dinner' which had been postponed for three years due to the Covid outbreak.
Martin added ' The duty crew were glad that they had agreed to refrain from alcohol on the night, so that a crew could be available for any duties, as was this case. They are to be commended for their actions, so that Rhyl RNLI can always launch to assist people in trouble on or near the sea'.
A further report on the crew dinner will be provided later.

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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