Walkers saved from incoming tide by Eastbourne RNLI
Eastbourne RNLI’s inshore lifeboat went to the assistance of two visitors yesterday afternoon (Sun 29 Jan) when they became cut off by the incoming tide whilst walking along the shore beneath the cliffs at Beachy Head
The couple had set out earlier from Birling Gap for a bracing work along the shoreline to celebrate a birthday but the afternoon ended in a tense scramble across jagged rocks, waist deep in freezing water for the couple from Richmond. Luckily several other walkers at the top of the cliffs saw the couple’s predicament as they realized their escape from the beach had been cut off by the flooding tide and they alerted the emergency services by dialling 999 on their mobile telephones.
Dover Coastguard coordinated the initial launch of the inshore lifeboat (ILB) but due to difficulty in maintaining radio contact with the ILB close inshore under the cliffs, Solent Coastguard took over mid way through the rescue. Volunteer Helmsman Paul Rogers nudged the ILB into the rocks and the couple were helped aboard by crewmen Richard Larmour and Dan Guy. The cold, wet and very relieved couple were then taken back to the steps at Birling Gap where they were passed to the care of the waiting Coastguard cliff rescue team.
An RNLI spokesman later said that despite repeated warnings people, particularly visitors to the coast, still seem unaware of the extent of the rise and fall of the tide which today was around five metres (over 16ft). Fortunately this couple were relatively fit and agile but if there had been young children or less agile people involved the outcome could easily have been far worse. We urge people to seek expert guidance if they are in any doubt before setting out on these undercliff walks.