Lytham St Annes RNLI rescue two people in danger in the River Douglas
With the tide ebbing quickly, the volunteer RNLI lifeboat crew from Lytham St Annes rescued the two casualties and their boat.
Two sailors reported to the Coastguard on Monday 6 May 2024, May Day Holiday, that their 38 foot (11.58m) canal boat had broken down in the River Douglas. The Coastguard paged the Lytham St Annes Inshore Lifeboat (ILB) crew and requested they launch to investigate the problem. The ILB was quickly launched from Lytham Jetty with helm Ben McGarry in command and proceeded upriver.
On arriving at the casualty, adrift part way up the Douglas, the ILB crew assessed the situation and found the canal boat was not repairable in the lonely reaches of that part of the river. As the tide ebbed off the danger to the man and woman on board the vessel increased. The probability was that the boat would capsize in the narrow channel left as the boat grounded after the tide left her.
Helm Ben McGarry realised the only way to ensure the safety of the two people on board was to tow their boat to a safe mooring at the Douglas Boatyard. Leaving them alone on board was not acceptable and would almost certainly end up with the boat being wrecked and a danger to the navigation in the tidal tributary.
With great skill, the ILB towed the casualty upriver until they reached the Boatyard where the yard owner was on hand to assist mooring up. After ensuring the two sailors were no longer in danger, the ILB headed downriver to be recovered at Lytham Jetty. The Sea Charity’s Lifeboat still had to be cleaned, refuelled and checked over before the Volunteer crew and Shore Crew could return to their May Holiday enjoyment after a service lasting for around two hours.
Helm Ben McGarry later said, “It was the only way to ensure the safety of the casualties in this remote part of the Ribble Estuary”.
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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 142,700 lives.
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