At 10.55am yesterday (Saturday 1 December) two lifeboats from Porthcawl RNLI were launched to a Mayday report of kayakers in difficulty off Newton Point, Porthcawl.

Chris Missen, Helmsman of the Porthcawl Atlantic 85 Lifeboat said “when we launched, we reached the kayakers within 5 minutes, and found that a few of the paddlers had been caught in a rip current off Newton Point, and were being taken out to sea. As the outgoing tide was so strong, they could not paddle back to shore against the current.”

Once on scene, the lifeboat crews took three of the kayakers ashore in the lifeboat, then made contact with the kayaker’s group leader to ensure all the paddlers were safe and accounted for.

Mrs Aileen Jones, the volunteer Launching Authority said “it was good to see that all the kayakers were properly equipped for the conditions with wet suits, lifejackets and radios. If the group did not have the radio to call for assistance, there was a possibility that they could have been taken out to sea unnoticed, and our speedy rescue could have turned into a major search. This call out highlights the importance of going to sea properly prepared with the correct equipment.”