St Bees RNLI volunteers and Whitehaven Coastguard were paged by Belfast Coastguard after a member of the public reported that three young children were drifting in a small inflatable about two hundred metres off the beach at Seascale.
At 2:35pm on Tuesday 23 July St Bees RNLI volunteers were requested to launch by Belfast Coastguard.
The St Bees volunteers made their way to Seascale and quickly located the children on their small inflatable toy.
As the lifeboat arrived the children were seen making their way to the shore where members of Whitehaven Coastguard as well as their parents met them.
St Bees RNLI were shortly after on scene and Helicopter Rescue 199 had made its way to area, soon to be stood down along with St Bees RNLI, the team issued some safety advice after checking no medical attention was needed before returning to station ready for service.
After confirming that the children were safe and did not need immediate medical attention the lifeboat crew retuned to a busy St Bees beach.
St Bees RNLI Operations Manager Dick Beddows said: “At the start of the school holidays with the sun shining the beach is a great place to be, but do be careful. An adult should accompany very young children at all times. Please make sure your inflatable is suitable to take in the water and if possible try and tie it to a fixed object as rip tides and currents or even a sudden gust of wind could ruin a great day out.”
A Whitehaven Coastguard spokesman said: “Many thanks to St Bees RNLI , R199 and especially the fast actions of the two members of the public who entered the water.
“With summer holidays upon us, it’s a timely reminder of the dangers these types of toys pose. In an emergency on the coast, cliffs or at sea, dial 999 (VHF Channel 16) and ask for the Coastguard.”
In an emergency on the coast or at sea dail 999 and ask for the Coastguard.
