The Southport coastguard team was called to reports of two people being swept out by the tide at Formby point
The Southport coastguard team was called to reports of two people being swept out by the tide at Formby point
Two men had to be rescued after getting into trouble while swimming off the coast of Formby. The two men were reported struggling 100m out in the Irish Sea at around 7.15pm yesterday, July 10.
Both swimmers were pulled from the water, with one being found “clinging to the shipwreck of the Ionic Star”. They were treated at the scene by ambulance services before being taken to Southport General Hospital. The Southport Offshore Rescue Trust and RNLI New Brighton Lifeboat Station were paged to the incident, along with coastguard teams from HM Coastguard Southport and HM Coastguard Crosby.
Numerous police cars, a rapid response vehicle, and ambulances also attended.
A HM Coastguard Southport spokesman said: “Southport coastguard team were tasked this evening to two people being taken by the tide out to sea at Formby point.
“The casualties were rescued by Southport lifeboat and also the quad bike found the second casualty on the tide line after taking in sea water.
“The lifeboat found the second casualty clinging to a wreck 1/2 a mile out to sea. The casualties were placed into the awaiting ambulance and taken for further check-up at the Southport General hospital.
“Lifeboats from New Brighton and Hoylake hovercraft were also tasked along with both boats from Southport lifeboat and Crosby coastguard team.”
A spokesman for the Southport Offshore Rescue Trust, the charity that provides a 24-hour lifeboat service around the Southport coast, said: “As we were preparing for our weekly training session, our crew were paged by Holyhead Coastguard to reports of two males struggling in the water, over 100 metres offshore at Formby.
“Our Inshore Lifeboat (ILB), Christopher Taylor, and quad bikes were dispatched, closely followed by our Arctic 24 lifeboat, Heather White, and our UAS (drone) team in the new incident van to assist with the initial search.
“The first casualty had been pulled from the water by a member of the public, and our quad crew provided immediate casualty care before transporting them to an Ambulance at Lifeboat Road car park.
“The second casualty was found clinging to the shipwreck of the Ionic Star and was safely recovered into the ILB before being handed over to Merseyside Police and coastguard officers on the beach.
“RNLI New Brighton Lifeboat Station were also paged to the incident, along with coastguard teams from HM Coastguard Southport and HM Coastguard Crosby.
“With the casualties safely back on dry land, all assets were stood down and returned to the boathouse following the rescue. Equipment was cleaned down and repacked, with the team finishing up by 10:30pm.”
