An elderly sailor was rescued from the water by Cowes RNLI after falling overboard during an incident in the Eastern Solent on Saturday afternoon (16th May).
Cowes RNLI launched their Atlantic 85 inshore lifeboat, Sheena Louise, at 11:30 to patrol the Round the Island powerboat race.
At around 13:00, as the crew headed towards the Eastern Solent, a pan-pan call was heard over the radio after a sailor was struck by the boat’s boom and thrown into the water. His fellow crew members were unable to recover him back onboard.
The situation quickly escalated, with the pan-pan upgraded to a mayday as the incident became life-threatening.
The Cowes RNLI crew made best speed to the casualty’s location and found the man still in the water holding onto a rope secured to the vessel by 2 crew members.
After requesting some slack on the line, the casualty drifted into a safer position where the RNLI crew were able to recover him onto the lifeboat.
The sailor had been in the water for around 20 minutes by the time he was rescued. Following an assessment, the decision was made to return him to the RNLI boathouse to warm up.
Meanwhile, Gosport Lifeboat crews escorted the casualty vessel back to Trinity Landing, before later taking the boat to its berth at East Cowes Marina.
Ventnor Coastguard and the Isle of Wight Ambulance Service attended the RNLI station, where the man was assessed and warmed up before being transported back to East Cowes Marina by the Harbour Master to reunite with his crew.
Cowes RNLI helm Myles has said:
“Accidents happen on the water and we are very glad we could be of assistance today.
“The casualty and the vessel’s crew did everything they could. He was wearing all the correct personal protective equipment, including a lifejacket which inflated when he hit the water, and had the crotch strap attached so the lifejacket stayed on.
“His crew had a radio on board and called for help when they were unable to recover him, and signalled the urgency of the situation so help could arrive quickly.
“Thank you to everyone involved.”
While I appreciate the majority of what the RNLI do, the amount of resources that have gone in to this is crazy.