Rhyl RNLI Lifeboat Crew Save Three in Inflatable

Rhyl's volunteer lifeboat crew were paged at 2:35pm on Sunday (25 May) afternoon, after Holyhead Coastguard had received a 999 call from the casualties to say that they had launched from the West end of Colwyn Bay, in their inflatable boat but had now been blown offshore and could not get back to land.

Rhyl's all-weather lifeboat launched at 3:05pm and proceeded to search from North of Rhyl towards Colwyn Bay. Coastguard Teams from Rhyl and Llandudno were also tasked to search from the shore.

An hour an a half later, Holyhead Coastguard were able to get the location of the casualties after they were able to regain contact with them over the phone, with the casualties using Google Maps to give their latest latitude and longitude.

Aided by an airplane from the National Police Air Service, Rhyl Lifeboat located the casualty vessel 2.7 miles North of Llanddulas, around 4 miles from where the casualties set off from.

The three casualties were taken aboard the all-weather lifeboat and treated for cold.

The lifeboat then returned them to land at the Rhyl Lifeboat Station, where they were met by officers from Rhyl and Llandudno Coastguard Teams, who gave safety advice by 6:15pm.

Paul Archer-Jones, duty Coxswain said 'This could have been quite a serious incident, the strong winds created some pretty difficult conditions for us to locate the casualty vessel. Luckily with the help of all the teams involved we were able to bring the casualties safely ashore. We always recommend if you are going to sea to take a means of calling for help, preferably a VHF radio, always wear a lifejacket or buoyancy aid, and check the weather forecast before heading out'.

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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