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Teenagers Taken Ashore by Whitstable RNLI
Three teenagers stranded on a moored vessel had to be brought ashore by the Whitstable RNLI lifeboat on Thursday afternoon.
The trio had swam out to a barge owned by the Whitstable Sea Scout Unit moored offshore from the Long Beach and found they were unable to get back ashore.
The B-Class lifeboat Lewisco was launched at 5.32pm. Helm Ollie Myhill said “Fortunatly they had a mobile phone and were able to call for help and it was a simple task to bring them onboard the lifeboat and land them ashore at the boathouse”.
“The safety message here is that it is inadvisable to swim out to moored craft as very often they are further out than it appears”.
The lifeboat was launched for a second time when at 9.20pm the crew responded to a reports of a person in the water near Tankerton Bay Sailing Club and waving for help.
On arrival at the scene the crew made visual contact with the casualty who was seen wading ashore knee deep in water and met by the coastguard team.
The lifeboat was therefore stood down by the coastguard and returned to station.
There has now been 38 calls for the volunteer crews at Whitstable RNLI so far this year.
RNLI Media Contacts
Notes to editors
Whitstable RNLI Lifeboat Station was established in 1963 by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution and is one of 237 lifeboat stations around the shores of the UK and Ireland. The volunteer crews provide a maritime search and rescue service for the Kent coast. They cover the area between the Kingsferry Bridge on the Swale, in the west, around the south-eastern side of Sheppey and along the coast through Whitstable and Herne Bay to Reculver in the east and outwards into the Thames Estuary.
The station is equipped with an Atlantic 85 lifeboat named Lewisco, purchased through a bequest of a Miss Lewis of London who passed away in 2006.
She is what is known as a rigid inflatable inshore lifeboat, the boat’s rigid hull being topped by an inflatable sponson. She carries a crew of four people.
For further information, please contact:
Chris Davey, Volunteer Lifeboat Press Officer for RNLI South East, [email protected]
Jess Curtis, RNLI Regional Communications Manager for London and South East England, 07483 488243, [email protected]
Julie Rainey, RNLI Regional Communications Lead for London and South East England, 07827 358256, [email protected]
RNLI Press Office, 01202 336789, [email protected]
Key facts about the RNLI
The RNLI is the charity that 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 146,700 lives.
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Contacting the RNLI - public enquiries
Members of the public may contact the RNLI on 0300 300 9990 (UK) or 1800 991802 (Ireland) or by email.