Sailor rescued by coastguard teams after falling into sea off Lochranza

A sailor who fell overboard from a yacht was rescued on Friday following a multi-agency operation.

The Arran Coastguard Rescue team received a mayday alert at around 3pm on Friday, September 18, from Belfast Coastguard after rescuers spotted a person falling from a yacht just off of Lochranza.

Team members from the coastguard arrived at the scene within ten minutes of the call and located the first responders, who had kept their eyes on the casualty.

Shortly afterwards coastguard rescue helicopter 199 from Prestwick arrived on scene and requested that the officer in charge of the Arran Coastguard Rescue team “talk” them to the casualty.

A spokesperson from the Arran Coastguard Rescue Team explained: “This is not as straightforward as it sounds as depth perception is difficult – knowing if the helicopter was in front of or behind the casualty as they flew towards us and the rough sea state meant the casualty would occasionally disappear from view behind the waves.

“The casualty was successfully located and winched safely into the helicopter.”

Due to turbulence in Lochranza, the helicopter landed at Catacol to finish their casualty assessment and liaise with the team.

The casualty, who had been in the water for over half an hour and was very cold, was then flown directly to hospital on the mainland.

The coastguard spokesperson added: “This was thankfully a successful rescue with many agencies and people playing vital roles – RNLI, Coastguard helicopter, Coastguard team, Calmac, fishing vessel and perhaps most importantly the first informants who had not taken their eyes off of the person in the water for a considerable time and were able to direct the emergency services to them.

“It would have been very easy to lose the position of the casualty in the rough seas. All coordinated expertly by MRCC Belfast.

“The sailor had on all of the correct lifesaving equipment which allowed him to survive in the rough and cold sea conditions until help arrived.

“The addition of a personal locator beacon to this would have aided the rescue by pinpointing his position in the water for the helicopter.”