Paddle boarder rescued from Roker's no-swim zone

An RNLI lifeguard rescued a woman on Saturday, July 17 after she struggled to hold onto her paddleboard whilst swimming in the harbour.

At around 3:30pm, Roker lifeguard Andy Brown began patrolling Roker harbour on a rescue watercraft due to a strong offshore wind.

Although the harbour is not usually a lifeguarded zone, the RNLI Roker team occasionally monitor the area as it becomes busy in the summer.

The harbour is an area where the river feeds out to the sea and the water is a watercraft only zone. However, when the charity’s lifeguard reached the harbour, over 100 people were swimming in the water with toy inflatables.

After regarding the danger of the toy inflatables coupled with the strong wind, Andy remained on his watercraft in the harbour.

The rest of the Roker lifeguards remained on the lifeguarded beach patrolling the area.

Shortly after, a woman fell off her paddleboard into the water but Andy did not see the casualty re-surface for a significant amount of time.

The RNLI lifeguard worked with the Harbour Master to get the woman out of the watercraft zone, as she was struggling to mount her paddleboard.

Andy took the woman back to shore on his rescue watercraft and gave her some safety advice after checking she had not sustained any injuries.

RNLI Roker lifeguard Andy Brown commented on the dangers of swimming in non-swim zones and asked people to stick to ligeguarded beaches when going for a swim in the sea.

He said: “Luckily, I was patrolling the water nearby the harbour as our Roker team know that people frequently swim there. It is a particularly dangerous zone designated solely for watercrafts.

“If you are choosing to swim in the sea this summer, please visit a lifeguarded beach and swim between the red and yellow flags. That way our lifeguards will be around to assist you if you should come into any trouble.”

Visit Lifeguarded Beaches - Find Your Nearest Lifeguarded Beach (rnli.org) to find your nearest lifeguarded beach.

Support your Echo and become a subscriber today.

Enjoy unlimited access to all of our news and sport, see fewer ads, experience faster load times, test your brain with daily puzzles and get access to exclusive newsletters and content.

The Sunderland Echo has been on Wearside since 1873, and your support means we can continue telling your stories for generations to come. Click here to subscribe.