Families urged to take care at the seaside after rise in lifeboat launches

SEASIDE VISITORS are being reminded to stay safe this summer by teams of water rescue officers following a major training exercise at Saltburn at the start of the peak summer holiday season.

Volunteer lifeboat crews at the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) in the North of England launched 1,032 times last year – up eight per cent on a year earlier – and saved a total of 64 lives.

The charity’s lifeguards, based at 38 beaches in the North, also saw attended more incidents last year, some 2,398 incidents compared to 2,065 in 2015.

The charity’s Humber-based crew launched its inshore lifeboats 67 times last year, the fourth highest of any stationed in the North, and nationally, launches were at a five-year high.

In an attempt to reverse the trend, families heading to the coast at the start of the school holidays are being reminded of how to stay safe. Steve Hart, senior coastal operations officer for HM Coastguard, said: “We want everyone to enjoy the coast, we love it too. Don’t forget though it can be a dangerous and unforgiving place for the unwary; check tides, look at local information about currents.”

There are about 165 accidental drownings around the UK each year, warned Helen Williams, the RNLI’s area lifesaving manager for North Yorkshire.

“As we head to the summer holidays we want to remind people to stay safe when they visit the North Yorkshire coast,” she said.

“Our advice is to always swim at a lifeguarded beach and swim between the red and yellow flags. If you see someone in difficulty raise the alarm by alerting a nearby lifeguard or calling 999 and asking for the coastguard. If you find yourself in trouble, float, remember to respect the water.”