Two walkers and a dog have been walked to safety after they became surrounded by the incoming tide on Burnham-On-Sea beach on Friday (November 22nd).
Coastguards, BARB Search & Rescue and a Burnham RNLI lifeboat were called out shortly after 2pm, as pictured here, after two ladies entered the sea at the southern end of the beach in front of Quantock Court to try and reach their dog which had run into the water.
A Burnham Coastguard spokesman said: “Two people were out taking the dog for a walk when it wandered off towards the water. They followed the dog to call it back and while they did this they didn’t realise the tide was creeping in around them.”
“The two people were on a sand bar on the south beach on Burnham seafront. This means that they were on a higher piece of sand than the rest of the beach around them. The water then rushes around the sand bar and cuts off anyone on them.”
“A member of the public spotted them and, feeling concerned for their safety, called 999 and asked for the Coastguard as the water continued to sweep in around the two people and the dog.”
“With the incoming tide it was a time-critical incident. We were tasked immediately as the leading team in charge, the local RNLI lifeboat was also tasked by Coastguards Operations Centre, along with BARB Search & Rescue who were already at their station and were immediately available to respond.”
“BARB kitted up some of their crewmembers and they made their way to the persons and helped them back to safety through the water.”
“They were then transferred to the Coastguard Station where they were checked for any medical issues and given a nice hot brew to warm them up, before they made their way home, cold and a little wet, but otherwise OK.”
“We want everyone to enjoy our wonderful beaches but please remember your basic beach safety. Check tide times, keep an eye on your surroundings, and if your dog wanders off towards the water, don’t worry 99.9% of the time as they will come back once they have finished exploring.”
A BARB spokesman added: “Our crew were called out by Coastguards at 2pm after two people and a dog were reported to have become surrounded by the incoming tide on Burnham’s south beach.”
“Several of our crew – who were already at our station doing training work – were able to quickly get into their dry suits, prepare water rescue equipment and PPE (personal protective equipment).”
“They made their way along the seafront to the two ladies who had entered the sea to try and retrieve their dog and surrounded by sea water.”
“A Burnham lifeboat also arrived on scene a short time afterwards and the crewmembers from BARB and the RNLI jointly walked the two people through the shallow water to safety. They were taken back to the Coastguard Station where they were given a check over and a welcome cup of tea. This was a happy, quick ending to what could have been a serious incident.”
