Due to the very high tide and lack of beach today, rescue crew were training on lifeboats Rescue 1 & Rescue 4 in the harbour and alongside the harbour arm.
At 3.10pm, we received a radio call from Dover Coastguard alerting us to an reported incident at Sunny Sands. Both rescue boats responded and were beached close to the incident location.
On arrival it was discovered that two children who had been swimming off the beach had been caught in a riptide and pulled away from the shore. Luckily, some quick-thinking swimmers nearby were able to reach the children and bring them back to the beach shortly before crew arrived on scene.
Both children were very cold and shaken, so rescue crew provided emergency blankets and medical assistance. Due to concern over the children’s condition, an ambulance was called and was on scene within minutes.
After the children were assessed and treated by paramedics, they were then taken to hospital as a precaution.
They should have lifeguards on the beach. If those people weren’t there, my sister probably would have drowned in that rip along with her friend. Even small beaches need lifeguards.
Our lifeguards patrol the beach during the daytime when it is busy, usually 10am to 4pm – but these times can change depending on weather, tides and number of people on the beach. When our lifeguards are on duty, the container doors will be open and the two lifeguard flags will be flying; this indicates when it is safe for people to swim.
A big thank you to the people who saved these children.