KAYAKER RESCUED FROM THE SEA
A man has been rescued from
the sea in Oxwich
Bay , Gower this evening
after his kayak capsized and sank.
Swansea Coastguard received
a 999 call at 8.35 pm via a member of the public who had met a kayaker who had
paddled to shore to raise the alarm. His friend’s kayak had capsized and then
sunk and he was now in the water. He was not wearing a buoyancy aid. Another
kayaker had attempted to tow the kayaker whose vessel had capsized to shore but
quickly had to abandon this attempt and gave him his buoyancy aid.
Meanwhile, Swansea
Coastguard requested the Horton RNLI inshore lifeboat to launch and sent the
Oxwich Coastguard Rescue Team to the scene. The lifeboat quickly found the
kayaker who was still in his boat safe and well. They searched for the second
kayaker in the bay for 20 minutes and were eventually able to hear his calls
for help and rescue him from the water as the light was fading.
Swansea Coastguard’s Marc
Lancey says:
“We were very relieved that
the lifeboat was able to find the man in the water before darkness fell. He was
wearing a grey t-shirt and grey buoyancy aid and was therefore difficult to
locate in the sea.
“If you are going kayaking,
always wear a buoyancy aid. Take at least a couple of means of calling for help
with you. A VHF radio is ideal backed up by mini marine flares and a mobile
phone sealed inside a plastic bag.”