On Air Now

Paddy in the Morning

6:00am - 10:00am

  • 01723 336444

Now Playing

Chris Rea

Driving Home For Christmas

Download
Listen Live Advertise

VIDEO : Rowers Rescued by RNLI After Boat Capsizes off Whitby Coast

Tuesday, 19 December 2023 14:41

By Matthew Pells

Whitby RNLI have released video footage of Saturday's rescue.

The experienced rowers had headed out in the calm conditions of the harbour but upon exiting the pier ends had noticed a strong cross-shore wind picking up.

They decided to head back to harbour but upon attempting to turn around their boat overturned and the pair ended up in the water.

They signalled to another rower to dial 999 and ask for the Coastguard as they knew the conditions would make it difficult to conduct a buddy rescue.

Jonathan Marr who was helm on the inshore lifeboat said:

'When you hear that you are attending a shout to two people in the water, you know you need to get there quickly as every second counts. When we arrived we were relieved to see that both casualties were wearing lifejackets and had managed to climb onto the upturned hull of their rowing boat.'

With no way of controlling the vessel the rowing boat had drifted about a mile off shore when they were reached by the RNLI volunteers,

Jonathan added:

'We later learned they had undertaken capsize training which was invaluable in this incident as its very easy to panic when you end up in cold water unexpectedly.'

The pair were transferred to the inshore lifeboat and brought to the lifeboat station where they were checked over for hypothermia by waiting paramedics.

The RNLI's advice to anyone taking part in water-based sports is to

  • Always wear a lifejacket
  • Carry a means of calling for help
  • Always check the conditions before heading out
  • Undertake the relevant training so you know what to do in an emergency

Jonathan added:

'Even the most experienced of people can get caught out - everything can change in an instant. The one thing we want people to remember is FLOAT TO LIVE - lay on your back and try to relax, this can help reduce the chances of cold water shock setting in.

If you get into difficulty in the water, or see someone else in trouble, dial 999 and ask for the Coastguard.'

 

Share

Did you find this article useful?

This is the Coast is committed to providing a daily local news service for the Yorkshire Coast. We are a small locally owned and operated business which employs professional journalists and reporters. We do not receive any public funding or grants and we are entirely funded by our local commercial operations. We enjoy fabulous support from local businesses who work with us on their advertising and marketing campaigns, but the cost of providing high quality, well researched, fact checked local news coverage is significant.

If you appreciate what This is the Coast does, and would like to help support our journalism, please consider supporting us on a monthly basis today.

A small contribution from all our readers would really help support independent journalism for the Yorkshire Coast.

More from Yorkshire Coast News

Comments

Add a comment

Log in to the club or enter your details below.

Follow Us

Get Our Apps

Our Apps are now available for iOS, Android and Smart Speakers.

  • Available on the App Store
  • Available on Google Play
  • Just ask Amazon Alexa
  • Available on Roku

Today's Weather

  • Scarborough

    Heavy Rain

    High: 11°C | Low: 6°C

  • Filey

    Light rain

    High: 11°C | Low: 7°C

  • Whitby

    Heavy Rain

    High: 11°C | Low: 5°C

  • Bridlington

    Light rain

    High: 11°C | Low: 6°C

  • Hornsea

    Light rain

    High: 11°C | Low: 7°C

  • Driffield

    Light rain

    High: 11°C | Low: 6°C

News

© Copyright 2025 This is the Coast Limited. This is the Coast is licensed by PRS & PPL to stream music online. Powered by Aiir.