Heliport
17th Sep 2005, 20:02
From the Western Mail, Cardiff Trapped couple refuse coastguard rescue
COLD, wet and scared, most people trapped by the sea near cliffs are grateful for the sight of a rescue helicopter.
But one couple refused to let a lifeboat and helicopter crew rescue them, and kept them hanging around in rough weather for six hours - at enormous cost. The man hurled abuse at rescuers when they sent a winch to the bottom of a cliff to lift him and his wife, a spokesman for HM Coastguard said yesterday.
The elderly couple, who would only give their Christian names, set off on a walk from a popular beach near Skomer Island on Thursday afternoon. The tide then came in and cut them off.
They were stuck in a cove, but were determined to stay put and told rescuers near Milford Haven, Pembrokeshire, to leave them alone.
Rescuers on land, sea and in the air - who had been called by a worried passer-by - could then do nothing but wait.
As the rescue effort dragged on, the cost of the helicopter and lifeboat alone spiralled towards £19,000. Launching a sea-rescue helicopter is estimated to cost about £6,000 an hour. The RNLI estimates the cost of a lifeboat call-out is between £2,000 and £5,000. The all-weather lifeboat at Angle, manned by two full-time and three volunteer crew members, could not get near to the rocks where the couple were sitting because the sea was too rough.
A helicopter was sent from RAF Chivenor in Devon. But the crew finally gave up after two hours when the man insisted they would simply wait for the tide to go out. All that police and a coastguard cliff-rescue team could do was stand around at the scene and wait.
At one point coastguards drove two-and-a-half miles from the beach at Marloes with water-proof jackets and a flask of coffee - but these were refused. Dressed in jumpers, the couple had little protection against the rain which began falling halfway through their plight.
Eight coastguards, four helicopter crew, five lifeboat crew, two police officers and control- room staff across the country were involved in the rescue attempt. The RAF base at Kinloss, Scotland, which controls sea patrols, was listening in.
At 8.30pm, more than six hours after the pair were spotted, the tide had finally gone out far enough for them to walk to safety.
Tony Rimmer, a watch officer at Milford Haven coastguard, said, "People were dragged in from all over the place. "They were quite happy just sitting there. I don't know what they were doing. They were sitting down there waiting for the tide to go out. It was a little bit strange. It doesn't happen very often, thankfully."
He said the couple could not be arrested for wasting police time as declining assistance is not a crime.
The couple did however accept a lift back to their car when they got to the beach.
Jerry Rees, coxswain of Angle lifeboat, said, "The woman was quite cold. They just sat it out in the end. Usually, especially when we get in there, they are quite grateful to get off there, especially when it's dark and the temperature drops. I don't think the chap realised really.
"I think the helicopter had got a bit fed up after coming all the way. It's just a waste of resources."
An RAF spokesman said, "Most people are very glad to be removed from dangerous situations, but I dare say you are bound to meet somebody who doesn't believe they need rescuing. I suppose it is, at the end of the day, a free country."
An RNLI spokeswoman said, "Our volunteer crews would much rather go out to someone rather than someone spot someone in trouble and think it's not worth the trouble of calling the lifeboat. We would rather go out and find someone alive than dead."
COLD, wet and scared, most people trapped by the sea near cliffs are grateful for the sight of a rescue helicopter.
But one couple refused to let a lifeboat and helicopter crew rescue them, and kept them hanging around in rough weather for six hours - at enormous cost. The man hurled abuse at rescuers when they sent a winch to the bottom of a cliff to lift him and his wife, a spokesman for HM Coastguard said yesterday.
The elderly couple, who would only give their Christian names, set off on a walk from a popular beach near Skomer Island on Thursday afternoon. The tide then came in and cut them off.
They were stuck in a cove, but were determined to stay put and told rescuers near Milford Haven, Pembrokeshire, to leave them alone.
Rescuers on land, sea and in the air - who had been called by a worried passer-by - could then do nothing but wait.
As the rescue effort dragged on, the cost of the helicopter and lifeboat alone spiralled towards £19,000. Launching a sea-rescue helicopter is estimated to cost about £6,000 an hour. The RNLI estimates the cost of a lifeboat call-out is between £2,000 and £5,000. The all-weather lifeboat at Angle, manned by two full-time and three volunteer crew members, could not get near to the rocks where the couple were sitting because the sea was too rough.
A helicopter was sent from RAF Chivenor in Devon. But the crew finally gave up after two hours when the man insisted they would simply wait for the tide to go out. All that police and a coastguard cliff-rescue team could do was stand around at the scene and wait.
At one point coastguards drove two-and-a-half miles from the beach at Marloes with water-proof jackets and a flask of coffee - but these were refused. Dressed in jumpers, the couple had little protection against the rain which began falling halfway through their plight.
Eight coastguards, four helicopter crew, five lifeboat crew, two police officers and control- room staff across the country were involved in the rescue attempt. The RAF base at Kinloss, Scotland, which controls sea patrols, was listening in.
At 8.30pm, more than six hours after the pair were spotted, the tide had finally gone out far enough for them to walk to safety.
Tony Rimmer, a watch officer at Milford Haven coastguard, said, "People were dragged in from all over the place. "They were quite happy just sitting there. I don't know what they were doing. They were sitting down there waiting for the tide to go out. It was a little bit strange. It doesn't happen very often, thankfully."
He said the couple could not be arrested for wasting police time as declining assistance is not a crime.
The couple did however accept a lift back to their car when they got to the beach.
Jerry Rees, coxswain of Angle lifeboat, said, "The woman was quite cold. They just sat it out in the end. Usually, especially when we get in there, they are quite grateful to get off there, especially when it's dark and the temperature drops. I don't think the chap realised really.
"I think the helicopter had got a bit fed up after coming all the way. It's just a waste of resources."
An RAF spokesman said, "Most people are very glad to be removed from dangerous situations, but I dare say you are bound to meet somebody who doesn't believe they need rescuing. I suppose it is, at the end of the day, a free country."
An RNLI spokeswoman said, "Our volunteer crews would much rather go out to someone rather than someone spot someone in trouble and think it's not worth the trouble of calling the lifeboat. We would rather go out and find someone alive than dead."