Illuminating flare leads to vital decision in sea rescue

11/01/2023

An illuminating flare helped coastguards make an important decision in a rescue of a woman trapped by a rising tide in Cornwall on Boxing Day.

She became stranded on a rock at Trebarwith Strand, near Tintagel, in darkness one afternoon in December and was rescued by a helicopter crew after a starburst flare helped coastguards assess the best way to save her.

It was proposed that Port Isaac RNLI should attempt a rescue by water, but the flare showed a six-foot sea swell. This “washing machine around the rocks” would have made the attempt too dangerous, said Boscastle Coastguard.

So, instead, it waited for a Coastguard Rescue 924 Helicopter, sent from Newquay, which winched the woman to safety. Medical checks showed she was cold, but uninjured.

Polzeath Coastguard, Padstow RNLI lifeboat and Port Isaac RNLI all attended the rescue mission.

From the helicopter, a winchman was lowered down to the woman who was winched to safety and checked for injuries by medics in the helicopter. She was uninjured, aside from the cold.

A spokesperson said it was “a good team effort from everyone involved last night and undoubtedly, a life saved.”

The image, from Boscastle Coastguard Team, shows the helicopter rescue.