Three emergency shouts in three days for the Lymington RNLI lifeboat crew.
When three emergency calls came in as many days over the bank holiday weekend, the Lymington volunteer lifeboat crew were challenged to put much of their life saving training into effect under pressure.
On Friday 26 August, the station’s Atlantic 85 inshore lifeboat David Bradley was tasked by HM Coastguard to attend an individual suffering from a serious medical condition on a boat within the Lymington River.
In accordance with RNLI Casualty Care training, lifeboat helm Greg Pachany and crew Simon Nuding and Gunner Christensen worked alongside the ambulance crew to stabilise and carefully transport the casualty from the boat to the slipway and waiting ambulance.
Lymington RNLI shore crew both assisted the ambulance crew and formed a cordon for the Hampshire Air Ambulance to safely land close by in Bath Road park. Two trauma doctors from the helicopter expertly took over care and accompanied the casualty to hospital by road. The lifeboat was promptly recovered and prepared for service.
At 7.40pm the following day, Saturday 27 August, the Lymington lifeboat was requested to assist and evacuate a casualty who had a suspected spinal injury on a pontoon at Lymington Town Quay.
Following careful assessment, the lifeboat transferred the casualty onto a stretcher and back to the lifeboat station, where they received additional care before being handed over to the ambulance crew. The lifeboat was back on service by 8.55pm.
The third shout came at 4.18pm on Sunday 28 August, when the lifeboat crew were paged to reports of two people in the water near Keyhaven.
The lifeboat was quick to launch under the helm of Phil Baker. Once at the entrance to Keyhaven, reports confirmed that both casualties had been recovered and taken to the shore by another vessel unharmed. The lifeboat stood down and returned to the station.
Lymington RNLI Lifeboat Helm Phil Baker commented 'Our dedicated volunteer lifeboat crew and shore crew receive comprehensive training and undertake regular exercises to deal with emergency situations such as the three we attended over the long weekend. It’s been a busy and at times very challenging few days and I am proud of the care we have been able to provide. We are one crew committed to saving lives when the shout goes out'.
Ends
RNLI Contact details:
Jo Styles, Deputy Lifeboat Press Officer, Lymington Lifeboat Station (07725) 640871 J[email protected].uk
Paul Dunt, Regional Media Officer, SE and London (07785) 296252 [email protected]
For enquiries outside normal business hours contact the RNLI duty press officer on (01202) 336789
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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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