At 2:50pm on Monday 18 March 2019, Morecambe’s volunteer RNLI lifeboat crew were tasked by HM Coastguard to go to the aid of a quad bike rider reported to have become stuck in the mud approximately 370 metres from the shore, in Half Moon Bay, near Heysham.
Within 10 minutes, the inshore rescue hovercraft was launched and proceeded to the scene; where the crew unsuccessfully attempted to free the quad bike from the mud. In order to ensure his safety, the quad bike rider was taken on board the hovercraft and transported to shore; to await assistance from local coastguard teams with their specialist vehicle.
Volunteer Deputy Launching Authority, Colin Midwinter, said: “We don’t want to put people off from enjoying our bay but recommend that they keep close to the shore.
“This is the second time this year that we have gone to the aid of someone in this area and although the gentleman wasn’t particularly far out, he still got into difficulty; indicating that conditions in this part of the Bay may be particularly hazardous at present.
“If it appears muddy, it probably is and the further out you are, the harder it is to rescue you. We also strongly advise people to respect the water by checking the time of the tide. It comes in very quickly making it easy to get cut off and therefore, potentially, very dangerous.”
