Salutory lesson

From the Coastguard website:

At 09:20 this morning Brixham Coastguard received a 999 call from a lady on a mobile who reported being in a speedboat, which was sinking. The lady was unsure of her position but was able to tell the Coastguard that they had left Paignton bound for Torquay, and that there were three others, a man, a child and a dog onboard. Contact with the vessel was very quickly lost as the vessel sank and no further information could be obtained.

Brixham Coastguards immediately launched the Inshore Lifeboat from Torbay and sent a Coastguard Helicopter from Portland to the area. Additionally the Fisheries vessel `Drumbeat of Devon proceeded to assist and Coastguard units positioned themselves on high ground in an attempt to locate the vessel and crew.

Three people (with only one wearing a lifejacket) and a dog were recovered from the water; one suffering from hypothermia by the RNLI Torbay inshore lifeboat and transferred to Torquay Harbour to an awaiting ambulance. They were then taken to Torbay hospital.

Dave Scullion Watch Manager at Brixham Coastguard said

These people were very lucky to survive as they were in the water for over 30 minutes, water temperatures at this time of year are about 9 degrees Celsius and after spending this amount of time in the water, we would expect them to be approaching a dangerous hypothermic state and this would affect their ability to stay afloat. In this instance they were able to hold onto their stricken vessel.

We cannot stress enough the importance of going to sea prepared, vessels should be well found, there should be sufficient lifejackets for all on board and they should be worn. A VHF radio should be carried as this is the best way of alerting us and other seafarers in the vicinity, to problems. In date distress flares should also be carried as these can help rescuers locate the vessel.