At 14:32hrs, HM Coastguard tasked our D Class lifeboat, George Bearman II, to assist a windsurfer in difficulty.
Launching into challenging weather conditions brought by Storm Ingrid, the crew headed towards Pole Sands. Negotiating force five winds and rough seas with three metre swells, the male casualty was quickly located in rough surf by the safe water mark to the mouth of the estuary and was recovered to the charity’s inshore lifeboat by the Exmouth lifeboat crew.
The casualty had got into difficulty when his equipment failed. However, he was being watched by a group of friends who quickly made the 999 call to the coastguard and who were able to keep eyes on him and give an accurate location.
The charity’s D-class lifeboat returned to the lifeboat station where the casualty, who was very cold, was given blankets and took a warm shower. The friends of the casualty continued their support, bringing dry clothes to the station for the casualty, before he returned home.
Exmouth RNLI Launch Authority, Liam Pessell, said, “There were a number of people out on the water today, making the most of the windy conditions. Unfortunately, for this casualty, his equipment failed him today. Our crew are always ready when the pager goes and we are happy that we were able to bring him to safety. Despite the conditions being pretty windy today, the winds are blowing onshore, and this meant we could locate the casualty quickly and get him back to the warmth of the boathouse.”
The inshore lifeboat, George Bearman II, was washed down, re-fuelled and sits ready in the boathouse for the next tasking.