Burnham-On-Sea’s lifeboats and Coastguards were called out on Sunday afternoon (August 27th) to help two swimmers reported to be struggling in the sea off Brean Beach.
The concerned beach warden had contacted the Coastguard Operations Room and explained that the swimmers had been out in the water some time and were apparently unable to make it back to the shore of their accord.
As Weston Lifeboats were still returning from an incident at Brean Down involving two kayakers, they were asked to make their way back and Burnham RNLI’s lifeboats were also launched, taking them away from Burnham’s Rescue Services Day.
Fortunately, both the persons managed to make it back to shore as Coastguards arrived and they were safely with the Brean Beach Warden.
The beach warden said that they were fortunate to have made it back to shore because the current had dragged them out and both had been in difficulty.
A Coastguard person added: “The lady of the group was especially upset by the ordeal and had a slight sign of shock. Once we reassured her that everything was fine and she was safe and wrapped her in a warm blanket we asked the RNLI Lifeguard to just give her a quick check over and explain the signs and dangers of secondary drowning.”
“Secondary drowning is the term given when water settles on the lungs after ingesting water. In the hours afterwards, it can cause inflammation or swelling, which then impacts a person’s ability to breathe. It can cause severe discomfort and in the worse case scenario, death. A scary ordeal that could’ve ended very badly.”
“The currents can be very strong and care should always be taken when entering open water. We escorted them back to their worried families where after some reassuring hugs they continued to enjoy their holiday.”
Pictured: The Burnham lifeboats being launched to the incident on Sunday afternoon
