MISSING DIVER FOUND BY PASSING YACHT

A diver has been found in Start Bay, east of Salcombe by a passing yacht, an hour and a half after he was due to resurface.
Brixham Coastguard received a 999 call from a small boat, which had been acting as a diving platform for a lone diver, at 11.20 am. The caller reported that the diver had been due to resurface an hour and a half previously, but that there had been no sign of him. A few minutes after the 999 call had been received a yacht, ‘Swift Bird’, reported that it had seen a diver on the surface of the water in Start Bay. Brixham Coastguard had already requested the Salcombe RNLI inshore lifeboat to launch and so the lifeboat was able to go directly to Start Bay and retrieve the diver from the water. The diver was then reunited with his dive boat which was off Hallsands.
Dave Colmer, Brixham Coastguard Watch Manager says:
“Speed is of the essence in searching for and rescuing people from the sea, so we recommend that as soon as you suspect that something is amiss at sea, you contact the coastguard. The missing diver was incredibly fortunate that a yacht happened to be passing and spotted him.
“All vessels should carry a VHF radio (VHF DSC is preferable) so that they can broadcast requests for assistance on the emergency channel, channel 16. A mobile phone is a good back-up – dial 999 and ask for the coastguard in an emergency situation.”

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