Hornsea Inshore Rescue has been called out for three days in a row.
On Sunday, August 11, it was tasked to go to the aid of a swimmer who was nearly a mile off the central beach. The alarm had been raised by the beach lifeguards, one of whom was swimming out to go to the swimmer’s aid.
Spirit of Hornsea was launched within seven minutes of being paged at 3.10pm on Sunday, August 11, and was soon on the scene.
Coxswain was Steve Hall accompanied by coxswains Joe Brown and James Kennedy as crew. Launchmaster was Dale Walker.
The swimmer was initially reluctant to board the lifeboat which had already picked up the lifeguard but once having experienced the way the current was carrying him out to sea and taking advice from both the crew and the lifeguard, he boarded the boat and was safely returned to shore.
Steve said that though the sea may look calm and inviting, there are the hidden dangers of currents and the increasing coldness as one gets into the deeper water. Exhaustion can soon overcome a swimmer in these circumstances.
The next day, Monday August 12, saw Spirit of Hornsea called out again at 4.06pm with coxswain Steve Hall and coxswains Rob Carthew, Joe Brown and Carl Handley as crew, Launchmaster was again Dale Walker.
They were tasked to assist the ambulance service deal with a casualty with breathing difficulties on Aldbrough beach. It was thought that the casualty may have to be evacuated from the beach by boat because of the difficulties in climbing the cliffs.
However, as it was a low tide with significant swell it was thought that a more appropriate option would be to evacuate using the coastguard helicopter, which is what happened. All this time the Spirit of Hornsea remained on the scene as a safety precaution.
After about two hours, the lifeboat returned to its Hornsea base where it was washed down and prepared for the next callout.
On Tuesday, August 13, the lifeboat was tasked by the Humber Coastguard to go to a yacht suffering engine failure on passage to Hull Marina, four miles offshore from Hornsea.
The Spirit of Hornsea located the vessel and towed it into the nearest safe haven port of Bridlington.
This technical rescue allowed the crew to demonstrate some of the more advanced towing skills they practise.
Hornsea Inshore Rescue’s boat and crew remain on call 24/7, 365 days a year, to respond to emergencies along the coast.
