Hunstanton RNLI launches lifeboat after reports of kitesurfer in trouble in The Wash

A lifeboat was launched at the weekend after crews received reports that a kitesurfer had got into difficulty in The Wash.

Volunteers at Hunstanton RNLI were paged just before 1.40pm on Sunday after being tasked by HM Coastguard.

They quickly launched the fast inshore lifeboat Spirit of West Norfolk into a rising tide, with a strong southerly wind gusting at 40mph.

The craft, with four on board, made its way north from the station before finding a kite around half a mile from the shoreline without its owner - who it transpired had made their way to safety.

RNLI lifeboat operations manager Mike Gould said: “It was a shout with good intentions. The surfer had pulled his safety release and the kite had blown out to sea.

“They made themselves known to the Coastguard at the earliest opportunity but at the same time there were reports from members of the public of someone in difficulty on a kite.”

The crew retrieved the kite to ensure there were no people in the water, and it matched the one reported by the public.

Coastguards and crew used a technique called ‘conning-on’, where coastguards observing from a high area of the Hunstanton cliffs were able to see the object in the water and guide the lifeboat towards it.

A lifeboat crew is working at sea level without the visual advantage of height, so their view of a rescue scene can be limited.

Search and rescue partners use a simulated clock face to pass instructions to help them quickly locate a casualty.

The crew also checked on another surfer to ensure they were safe, before returning to their station just after 3pm.

The ‘shout’ came just over an hour after the lifeboat had been cleaned down, checked and refuelled following one of the station’s regular Sunday exercises, which saw the crew honing navigation and anchoring skills.