Brighton RNLI issues warning on taking inflatables out to sea after boat rescue

The volunteer crew were on their way to a training exercise in Newhaven just after 7pm when they were alerted to three people in an inflatable boat near Saltdean.

One adult and two children were then rescued by the crew having been blown out to sea by an offshore wind.

Soon after the crew had returned their Atlantic 85 lifeboat Random Harvest to their station at Brighton Marina at around 9.23pm they were then called out to a report of a male in the water near the Palace Pier. The crew rescued the male and then passed him into the care of the emergency services.

Lifeboat operations manager Roger Cohen MBE said: ‘Our advice is not to use inflatables in the sea – please save them for the pool.

‘If you do decide to head down to the beach please stay near lifeguards, make sure children are supervised and stay close to the shore between the red and yellow flags.

‘It is vital to have a means of communication and safety equipment like a lifejacket or buoyancy aid.

‘Our crew are highly trained and ready to respond to emergencies but by spreading safety messaging we can hopefully make these call outs less frequent.

‘We know the beach is becoming busier now the weather is warming up so please share this information with your friends and family.’

The evening saw the first two shouts for trainee crew member Charlie Kelly who had joined for the routine exercise.

Charlie said: ‘I was excited to get my first two call outs in the same evening, it just shows it can happen at any time and the crew are always ready to react.

‘It was great teamwork making sure the four people who needed rescuing on Tuesday made it back safely onto land and I was able to use my training in a real-life situation.

‘We are expecting more call outs now the weather is warming up so it’s vital anyone going out on the water checks RNLI safety advice and has a means of communication with them.’

ENDS

· For more information please contact volunteer lifeboat press officer Hatti Mellor on 07724 801305, [email protected] or the regional media officer Paul Dunt on 07785 296252 [email protected]

. Unfortunately there are no further images or video available with this release.

· 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 over 238 lifeboat stations in the UK and Ireland and, in a normal year, 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 142,700 lives.

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 142,700 lives.

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For more information please visit the RNLI website or Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. News releases, videos and photos are available on the News Centre.

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.