St Davids RNLI rescue sea kayakers
St Davids RNLI were tasked to launch to four sea kayakers in difficulty in strong northerly winds west of Abereiddi Bay on the May bank holiday weekend.
At 12:28pm on Saturday 3rd May, St Davids all-weather lifeboat was requested to launch by HM Coastguard following reports from a member of the public, and a call for help from one of the kayakers in trouble.
The charity’s lifeboat Norah Wortley made best speed and once on scene discovered that two people were in the water, one in a partially sunken kayak and one within a kayak holding onto the sinking kayak. With the strong wind forcing the kayakers towards shore, the coxswain manoeuvred the lifeboat to keep away from the rocks whilst the volunteer crew assisted all four casualties onto the lifeboat.
The kayakers were immediately assessed, with the possibility of secondary drowning a risk as two had ingested water whilst struggling in the swell. Once back at station, the assessment continued before volunteers were confident that the casualties were safe to leave.
Judd Kohler, RNLI St Davids Deputy Coxswain, said: ‘The four kayakers got caught out by the conditions but were well prepared with the correct safety equipment, and did the right thing in calling for help. Thankfully one of our volunteer crew, Dr Roger Schofield, is a medical doctor and he carried out a thorough assessment of the casualties.’
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For more information please telephone Simone Eade, RNLI volunteer Lifeboat Press Officer on 07799 804 922 or [email protected] or Claire Fitzpatrick-Smith, Regional Communications Manager on 07977 728 315 or [email protected] or contact the RNLI Press Office 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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