Coastguard: Series Three, Episode Seven

More drama unfolds in episode seven

Glasgow Marine Office is alerted to a cargo ship that has run aground off the Isle of Skye, and the ship is permitted to make its way to Liverpool where it is inspected and detained. A boy on a bodyboard gets into difficulty and is struggling to get back to shore. Meanwhile, in Northern Ireland, three boys are cut off by the tide meaning coastguard rescue teams are needed to carry out a cliff rescue.

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The view of a cliff rescue looking down a cliff towards a coastguard rescue officer

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'Thank you for saving me'

Three boys are fishing below cliffs on the County Antrim coast when the tide comes in. Climbing the 100ft cliff, one of the boys gets stuck, while the other tumbles to the ground below. Meanwhile, a third becomes stuck by the tide.

Emergency services are called into action, and the Port Rush lifeboat rescues two boys stuck on rocks at the bottom of the cliff. Stuck midway up the cliff, a third casualty is rescued by a Rope Technician from Coleraine Coastguard Rescue Team.

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More coastal safety advice

Top tips at the coast

Check the weather and tides. Don't get caught out by the conditions.
Carry a means of calling for help. For example, a mobile phone in a waterproof pouch, a Personal Locator Beacon (PLB) or VHF radio.
Share your plans. Tell someone where you are going and what time you’ll be back. If you don’t return as planned, they can raise the alarm.
Remember “Float to Live”. If you find yourself in trouble in the water, relax and float on your back with your ears submerged.

Out of his depth

Holyhead Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre receive a call from a concerned café owner at Porth Oer beach in North-West Wales. There’s a young bodyboarder in the whitewater who’s struggling to get to shore.

A coastguard rescue officer, in blue HM Coastguard overalls, is on a busy sand beach

While Coastguard Rescue Officers and the HM Coastguard Rescue Helicopter race to the scene, members of the public manage to pull him to safety. But it’s suspected that he’s inhaled seawater.

Winch Paramedic Paul ‘Jonesy’ Jones assesses his casualty and discharges him at the scene.

Paul said: “I think it’s easy for people to underestimate how powerful the sea actually is. He didn’t have a lifejacket on, but he kept hold of that bodyboard. I think if he’d have lost that, it would have been a very different story.”

Assessment of the damaged vessel showing damaged and intact areas

A ship aground

In the small hours, a 470ft cargo ship runs aground near to the Isle of Skye. Having sustained damage during the incident, it’s agreed by the MCA and Secretary of State’s Representative for Maritime Salvage and Intervention that the vessel should travel to Port of Liverpool for further inspection.

MCA Principal Surveyor Zia Ul Haq visits the vessel to carry out a Port State Control Inspection. It’s quickly determined that there are several deficiencies in the ship’s operation, from faulty equipment to poor familiarisation of fire drills among the crew, so Zia detains the vessel.

Speaking with the Captain on the ship’s Bridge, Zia says: “We have to suspend our inspection because nothing is operational at the moment. There are deficiencies which are detainable so we have to stop the ship until the vessel and crew is safe again.”

He adds: “The incident when they went aground is very, very serious. They are really lucky that they had some rescue facilities available within a short time to save them.”

Want to make a difference?

Find out more about vacancies at the Maritime and Coastguard Agency or becoming a volunteer coastguard rescue officer.

Episode seven

Series Three, Episode Seven