RNLI busy on Loch Ness

As much as we enjoy seeing the boats out on Loch Ness now there are some people in charge of boating craft who really ought to be more careful. In the past few days the Loch Ness Lifeboat has been called out to assist people who have got into difficulty. We are emailed any rescues on the loch and they read as follows.....

April 9th.....For the third time in 24 hours, Loch Ness RNLI volunteers were tasked this evening to search for two adults and a child reported out of a canoe and on the shoreline of Loch Ness.
An RNLI team from Loch Ness were on the water training when a call came in from Aberdeen MRCC to search for the family group who had made contact by mobile phone to say they were exhausted and unable to continue on the water but stranded on a narrow shore below a sheer rock face. The eight year old girl and her parents were paddling the length of the Caledonian Canal but had been caught out by the sudden and severe change in conditions. The family were very well kitted out and had hoped to be able to camp on the shoreline, approx. 1 mile north of Urquhart Bay. Weather conditions changed rapidly and they made for safety before calling Aberdeen Coastguard, a number that they had stored on their mobile phone. As the RNLI team approached, the family used head torches to signal the crew and guide them to their location. The family were recovered by the crew, Ross Edwards, Sandra Delday and Joy Cameron, and recovered to the Loch Ness RNLI Lifeboat station and given tea and biscuits. One of the RNLI crew has provided the family with accommodation for the night and will help them on their way in the morning.

April 9th.....Lone sailor rescued from driving winds on Loch Ness.
A six metre, vintage sailing yacht with a lone sailor on board, was rescued when his vessel suffered engine failure with winds driving him onto the shore at Lochend, Loch Ness.Pagers alerted the Loch Ness RNLI volunteer crew at 15:29 to the plight of the sailor making his way from Lossiemouth to the West Coast of Ireland. Heading into the wind and a 1.5 metre swell, the engine failure meant the single male occupant was perilously close to being driven onto the rocky shoreline. Loch Ness crew Ross Edwards, Vivian Bailey and Martin Douglas were tasked by Aberdeen Coastguard to assess and assist the "Rona". The yacht was stabilised by the crew using the Atlantic 75 Lifeboat "Mercurius" and taken under tow, in very challenging conditions, to Urquhart Harbour, Drumnadrochit, where the skipper of the yacht was given a fresh brew and some advice. The yacht and it's skipper will continue the journey when conditions improve.

April 11th......Hypothermic canoeists rescued after capsizing on Loch Ness.

RNLI Loch Ness volunteer lifeboat crew members helped with the rescue of two canoeists earlier this evening in challenging conditions.The severe weather conditions on Loch Ness again impacted on leisure craft as two canoeists were thrown into the water. Their plight was noticed by a passing motorist who was able to alert the emergency services and guide in help.Loch Ness RNLI volunteers were launched at 2pm this afternoon to a report of people in the water alongside an upturned canoe. An RNLI lifeboat on passage to Oban was in the area and rapidly responded to the emergency call from Aberdeen MRCC. The Oban lifeboat crew located one of the casualties and were able to remove him from the water and take him to Fort Augustus to meet an ambulance.The Loch Ness RNLI team located a casualty on the shoreline who was suffering from hypothermia and in need of medical attention. A crew member from Loch Ness was put ashore and he assisted the individual, along with a member of the Fort Augustus Coastguard team. The location required a difficult lift of the casualty to meet the ambulance on the roadside above.Loch Ness RNLI lifeboat was then tasked to locate a second canoe which had lost contact with the first. En route to this casualty, the crew found the upturned canoe and personal belongings from the individuals recovered earlier. The second group were found nearby after they too had a person washed overboard, but were able to take themselves to safety, although in an isolated place. They were informed of their friend s situation and advised not to proceed on the water in the current conditions. Joy Cameron, Loch Ness RNLI crew member says ...We encountered extremely difficult conditions with 2 metre waves and force 5-6 winds. The crew and lifeboat took quite a pounding so conditions in the open canoes must have been terrifying. We would like to remind all users of the loch and sea areas to keep a close eye on weather conditions, prepare and plan thoroughly and have up to date equipment with good means of communication.

April 12th......Second "Shout" to same vessel on Loch Ness.

Loch Ness RNLI lifeboat team were called to assist a yacht aground in Urquhart Bay this morning, Sunday 12th April at 0930. This was the second time in three days that the skipper of the yacht "Rona" needed the help of the RNLI volunteer team on the loch.After resting and taking stock in Urquhart Harbour for the last two days, the sailor "PJ" attempted to leave the harbour in his vintage sailing vessel but ran aground approx 50 metres beyond the harbour entrance and within sight of the lifeboat crew who were training with the relief lifeboat.The skipper was towed into open water and given firm advice about the weather conditions and suitability of the yacht for the planned journey, but the skipper immediately headed out into the loch proper. He is currently in open water but making extremely slow headway.

Loch Ness RNLI lifeboat station has been operating since April 2008.

Loch Ness is Scotland's only RNLI Inland Lifeboat.

To learn more about the lifeboat station go to Loch Ness RNLI website