BBQ

At approximately 17:00 yesterday evening the Initial Response Team (IRT) were tasked to assist the ambulance service at Studland with a male with burns.

The male had stood in a BBQ and required treatment before going to hospital.

Taxi for Nick!

As a Coastguard team, we're always very grateful for the people around us that support the team - wives, girlfriends, families, townsfolk, employers who release us from work and so on, and as of yesterday, thanks too for random people that give us a lift to the station when the pager goes off.

Coastguard Nick had just arrived by train at Harmans Cross to look at the Armed Forces displays there when the pager went off, with its "Dog and Person over the cliff at Swanage" voice-over.   With no car, and no Swanage-bound train for half an hour,  and no apparent way of getting back in time, Nick flagged down an unsuspecting lady driving out of the village hall.

Very kindly the lady not only agreed to drive Nick back to Swanage, but also offered to take him to the Coastguard Station, or wherever was most convenient (in the end to Nick's house so he could pick his car up!).
In the course of the journey it became apparent that the lady wasn't local, but was actually from Coventry, and was down for a wedding the day before. At the time she was busy shuttling things from the reception back to the friend's house in Swanage so it was lucky there was room for Nick at all!  They don't have many cliffs or coastguards in Coventry, so we can forgive her for being just a little surprised when a strange man suddenly jumped in!

So to our good samaritan chauffeur (whoever you are, we didnt get your name!) thanks for your help, and the good news is that we rescued both dog and owner safely.

Rodney and owner rescued from cliff

The Swanage Team along with colleagues from St Albans Coastguard were tasked at 11am to a report of a person and dog stuck on the Down at Swanage.

A member of the public had walked into the NCI lookout at Peveril Point to report their friend stuck having gone down the cliff to get the dog.

The team arrived to find the male from the Reading area about 10 metres down alone with his dog Rodney.

A cliff technician was deployed to stabilise the male from falling and then recovery of both of them.




Nick Field stabilises the male from falling before the teams recovered both the male and dog.




Rodney safely back on the top of the cliff.

Whilst the teams packed up their equipment , another dog further up the Downs disappeared over the edge. Thankfully the dog reappeared but it was nearly another incident.

Please keep dogs on leads near cliff edges and never try and rescue a dog should it go over the cliff - Call 999 and ask for Coastguard.

Knocker-upper

A visit to the Brixham Heritage museum this week found a very interesting section on the Coastguard.

One piece was the " Knocker-upper" and was used to call the Coastguard team before pagers and telephones.

Somehow I think if these were refitted the number of false callouts may just increase as the need to pull on the rope whilst walking past may just be too much.

Purbeck Community Safety Week

The team (well, Eric actually) will be at the market at King Georges Car Park this morning (Friday) along with colleagues from the Police's Swanage Safer Neighbourhood Team and Dorset Fire & Rescue.

Pop along and say hello and find out about the work we do and how you can avoid having to call us.

Naturally enough, if you do see anyone in difficulty, or who appears to be in difficulty, in the sea or on the coast line, do not hesitate to DIAL 999 AND ASK FOR COASTGUARD.

Getting Ready

As the peak summer season draws near, some of the team have been at Studland Beach today liaising with the National Trust and working with their rangers to agree a common approach to dealing with incidents and call outs.
The local police team also attended as the three organisations frequently find themselves working hand in hand at the location, whether it be for missing people, lost children, washed up ordnance, craft broken free from moorings, medical evacuation from remote parts of the beach and much, much more.

We do this exercise at the beginning of every season to ensure we are ready for any incidents that might come our way.

Coastal Safety

Nee Narrs- what if they break?

The other day someone asked me what if the 'nee narrs' ever broke on our Coastguard Vehicle - and what would we do if they did.

Nee narrs- really!?!

To be honest he was 5 years old so this was a perfectly well phrased question.

I explained that we had an arrangement with Paington Zoo whereby we are loaned their Gibbon which we sellotape to the roof of the Coastguard Truck (low tack tape obviously). The Gibbon then does the business in warning other road users that we are approaching.

The five year old thought I was completely mad...

...until I showed him this.

I hope you will agree - a perfectly good replacement.

*Please note this is a purely fictional piece and HMCoastguard does not condone the sellotaping of Gibbons, or any other ape in the Hylobatidae family, to the roof of rescue vehicles.

** Other brands of sticky tape are available.

***Paignton Zoo, is a very nice day out,

Climber Rescued At Anvil Point

The Swanage Coastguard Team, St Albans Coastguard Team and both Swanage RNLI Lifeboats were called this afternoon to Anvil Point.

A climber had fallen and dislocated his shoulder and was unable to get back up the cliff.

Swanage RNLI Inshore Lifeboat was 1st on scene and provided 1st aid whilst the Coastguard teams set up their equipment. A Coastguard technician was lowered taking Chris who is both a Coastguard and who's full time job is a paramedic.

Options were considered on the best method of recovery, stretcher, lifeboat or by helicopter. Coastguard helicopter 106 was training in the area and stood by for a short while whilst the climber was fully assssed.

A stretcher recovery was confirmed and the St Albans Team provided a further technician with the stretcher and successfully recovered the climber to the top of the cliff and the waiting Paramedics.

Notably both Coastguard Rescue teams had trained for this very scenario last weekend!

What lies beneath ?

Joint Exercise at Guillemot Ledge

The Swanage and St Albans Teams joined this morning to exercise at Guillemot Ledge , east of Dancing Ledge. The location is tricky as it's an old quarry and is made up of 3 ledges. So the teams took a different approach today.




The Swanage Team set up one side , whilst the St Albans Team the other with 17 Coastguard Rescue Officers and a Senior Coastguard Operations Officer we had enough team members for two set ups.



Both teams set up and got technicians down the cliff. Nick and Steve on cliff edge safety.




View from Kerry as she went down the cliff. A group of climbers look on showing the 35 metre cliff face with tricky over hangs.


View looking down onto the St Albans Team


Nick enjoying himself heading down the cliff.


Kerry (it's my birthday, but don't tell anyone) takes Chris ( I've just finished my paramedic exams) on an assisted decent - guys it's serious stuff your not meant to enjoy it !

Queen Honours Swanage Lifeboat Volunteer

Swanage RNLI Lifeboat Operations Manager Neil Hardy has been appointed MBE

The retired ferry Captain has volunteered for the RNLI since 1989 and with his huge knowledge on seafaring has always been supportive in the maritime safety world.

Large Search finds male

Three Coastguard teams were tasked today to assist Dorset Police in searching the Purbeck Coastline for a missing male.

The search started in the Kimmeridge area with the local team backed up by the St Albans team but the search area was increased and the Swanage team were tasked to search from Anvil Point to Dancing Ledge.

Just before 3pm a member of the public reported seeing the male in Worth and the team along with Police located the male heading to Winspit.

Flares - use them properly

Just after 9pm last night the Station Officer spotted a red flare in the direction of Langton - in land and followed by some fireworks.

Flares are not a form of firework - they are a means of showing distress at sea and should not be misused.

A call to the National Maritime Operations Centre to alert them of the flare and assist them if any further 999 calls probably stopped a search. The Coastguard contacted Dorset Police for some follow up enquiries to be made.

Oddly just after midnight a further report of flares at Worth saw the St Albans Coastguard team called out searching but nothing further was found.

The Community and JESIP

"We are amazed at the emergency services and communities response to this, it doesn't happen where we live" - member of the public to an emergency services worker during yesterday's incident in Institute Road.

Thankfully serious incidents don't happen too often in Swanage but when they do there is an amazing sprit of "can do" which comes out.

From the Emergency Services , ( on and off duty) , members of the public, Swanage Town Council, Beavers Restaurant for providing hot refreshments to everyone and all the businesses in the Town who assisted , a huge thank you which saw those in need cared for until they could be evacuated to hospital.

The work of the emergency service saw a principle called JESIP swing into action .

JESIP - Joint Emergency Services Interoperability Principles is a national policy driven by the Home Office to see the emergency service work seamlessly.

Yesterday incidents in both the search and accident saw the principles rapidly put in place getting the ground commanders in place very quickly working on solutions and deploying staff on the ground.

As a JESIP trainer the Station Officer has spent a year training commanders and control room staff in Dorset - that training was really put into practise yesterday.

Thank you to the residents of Swanage - the accident in Institute Road basically cut the South side of Swanage off - it did take a few minutes to reverse various roads around.

Finally - an event today to mark another special group of individuals .

Swanage Coastguard Team in multi agency response to traffic collision.

During the course of a debrief with Police after a successful search tasking the Swanage Coastguard Team were requested to provide immediate assistance to the Police and South West Ambulance following a serious traffic collision on Institute Road, Swanage.  The St Albans Team who also were returning from the search assisted in setting up a landing site on Sandpit Field for the air ambulance.

The incident involved many  colleagues , RNLI crew and an off duty fireman.  A huge thank you also to the shops in Institute Road who provided support and refreshments.

More here (Bournemouth Echo):-

and here (Dorset Police):

Crabs

Two crabs were sunbathing on the beach.

The girl crab suggested that the boy crab go get them an ice cream cone. Having purchased two cones, Mr Crab made his way back to the beach, deciding on the way to eat his ice cream. By the time he had finished the ice cream, he realized that his girlfriend's had started to melt all down his claw, so he licked it up and ended up eating it too.

When he arrived back at the beach Ms Crab exclaimed "Where's my ice cream cone?

"Well", he said. "I decided to eat mine, then yours melted so I ate that too."

She was incensed and cried "You shellfish bugger!!"

Swanage Fish Festival 2015

http://swanagefishfest.org


Or 'Like' them on Facebook