Burnham-On-Sea’s lifeboat crews have taken to the water for a joint training exercise with local RNLI lifeguards, launching both boats in a carefully‑planned scenario close to the town’s jetty.
During the exercise, trainee D class helm Adam says a ‘call’ came in moments after the lifeboat Burnham Reach had launched from the jetty, with crews told that two lifeguards were on a rescue board with three simulated casualties requiring urgent lifeboat assistance.
The Atlantic 85 Doris Day and Brian headed north of the jetty to one of the groups while the D class crew made for the lifeguard and two casualties to the south, working in shallower water close to the beach.
On reaching the rescue board, the D class volunteers found one conscious casualty and another lying unconscious as part of the exercise.
The conscious casualty was quickly helped aboard the lifeboat while a crew member began assessing whether medical attention would be required.
The D class was then positioned alongside the board to extract the unconscious casualty, completing the recovery in the moderate sea conditions before returning to the slipway.
Senior helm Jason Coombes said the exercise had been designed to strengthen teamwork between Burnham RNLI Lifeboat crews and Burnham RNLI Lifeguards, with the focus on handling multiple conscious and unconscious casualties in realistic conditions.
He added that transferring a casualty from a rescue board to a lifeboat close to shore had proved challenging in the lively waves, but the teams worked through several techniques and came away with valuable lessons.
He added that the exercise had been both enjoyable and productive, reinforcing the importance of close cooperation between lifeguards and lifeboat crews when responding to real emergencies along Burnham’s coastline.
