As you’ll have seen in this episode, a big challenge for RNLI lifesavers is rescuing people stuck in mud. So, this week, we’re looking at some of our muddiest rescues:

Calshot: A battle to stay alive

First, we saw the crew at Calshot RNLI launch to an unconscious man who had fallen off a personal watercraft.

His pulse and breathing had stopped. He was in cardiac arrest. Every second could have meant the difference between life and death – so the volunteer crew started CPR. After five rounds, he started breathing again and the crew continued their battle to keep him alive until an ambulance arrived. 

He had suffered two brain injuries and was put into an induced coma for three and a half weeks. He is in recovery from his ordeal.  

Dover: Two lives saved

Next, we saw the volunteers at Dover launch to rescue two anglers. They’d been cut off on a pier by swelling seas and were in danger of being swept into the waves.

The pair had been fishing at night and weren’t wearing lifejackets. With the sea starting to wash over their legs, they were in a perilous position. 

The crew soon arrived and put their training into action, carefully guiding the lifeboat to the harbour wall where the anglers were stuck – a skilful bit of boathandling. Then they pulled the anglers onto the lifeboat, saving both of their lives.

Hartlepool: In safe hands

Over in Hartlepool, the volunteer crew were called out to help a stranded paddleboarder and her Chihuahua dog. The offshore winds had become so strong, they couldn’t get back to the beach. 

Within minutes, the crew had arrived – much to the relief of the very cold and shaken paddleboarder. The volunteers helped her and Remy the dog aboard the lifeboat and returned them safely to shore. 

Hoylake and New Brighton: Stuck in the mud

When a lone walker found himself waist-deep in mud on the banks of the River Alt, it took a coordinated multi-agency effort to free him and return him to safety.

Hoylake RNLI’s hovercraft, Hurley Spirit, and New Brighton’s Atlantic 85 lifeboat, Charles Dibdin, both launched. The New Brighton crew, alongside the Coastguard and Mersey Fire, began to dig out the walker while a paramedic assessed him for injuries. Hoylake’s hovercraft, which had also launched to the rescue, also provided crucial assistance – and finally, the walker was pulled from the mud.