New inshore lifeboat called to help paraglider who ditched off cliffs

A PARAGLIDER is in a non-critical condition after having to ditch at the bottom of the south coast cliffs.

Published Jul 19, 2019

Guernsey’s new lifeboat completed its first shout to rescue a paraglider stranded on rocks on the south coast.

The incident happened on Wednesday afternoon, when the glider came down at the base of the cliffs at Mont Herault.

The new inshore lifeboat was dispatched on its first shout at 4.25pm and arrived on the scene just before 5pm. The casualty and another person on the scene were assessed and recovered.

The all-weather lifeboat was also called in to support the new vessel. They arrived back in St Peter Port at 5.30pm and the casualty was transferred to the Princess Elizabeth Hospital.

Guernsey's new inshore lifeboat completed its first shout to rescue a paraglider stranded on rocks on the south coast. (25274815)

A Health & Social Care spokesman confirmed yesterday that the patient was in a non-critical condition and remained on a ward at the hospital.

Lifeboat operations manager Chris Harvey said the new inshore vessel had performed well.

‘This is a great example of how capable the ILB is for this type of rescue,’ he said.

‘On a rapidly rising tide, where every minute was crucial, the ILB was very quickly on scene and then able to get in amongst the rocks to rescue the casualties before transferring them to the bigger ALB. The ILB dramatically increases our ability to save lives in this situation.’