RNLI Rescues Paddle Boarder in Co Antrim

The RNLI was tasked to County Antrim on Monday after a man and two young girls were swept out to sea while paddle boarding.

The casualties each made it back to shore at Muck Island, near Islandmagee, following an operation involving a jet skier and the local RNLI volunteer crew.

After dealing with an earlier incident in Larne, the crew relaunched at 3.30pm to find the casualty. When arriving on the scene, they discovered the man had been on the water with his two daughters and hadn't realised the currents had been taking them further out to sea.

One of the girls made it back to the shore, but the father and his other daughter were finding it to be quite challenging, according to an RNLI spokesperson. A passing jet skier offered to take the young girl back into the shore, with the father contacting his family on the beach and the local coastguard for assistance.

When the volunteer crew reached the casualty, they discovered that he had been fighting the currents for 45 minutes. After assessing him for any injuries he and his board were brought into Portmuck at Islandmagee.

Inshore lifeboat helm Pamela Leitch said issued a safety warning following the incident: "Please be aware of the strong currents and crosswinds around our coastline. It doesn't take much for someone to get into real difficulty when they are blown out to sea. If you see someone who is struggling at sea, remember to call 999 or 112 and ask for the Coastguard."