Tag: coastguard

Portobello Beach Safety Markers

The City of Edinburgh Council installed location markers at Portobello Beach as part of a beach safety partnership with the Edinburgh Police Division and Maritime and Coastguard Agency in April 2021.

Numbered signs 1-6 have been attached to existing beach defence groynes and yellow circular signs to the sea wall. The emergency services can use these numbered markers to plot your location in an emergency.

Marker 1 – Pipe Lane

Marker 2 – Bath Street

Marker 3 – Bellfield Street

Marker 4 – John Street

Marker 5 – Bedford Terrace

Marker 6 – End of the promenade at Joppa Road

The signage has been used numerous times over the last few years, including search & rescue incidents.

Feedback from emergency responders and partner agencies has been very positive: “The numbered signs worked well, giving a direct place to attend, which in my view, saved vital minutes in our attendance.”

Please stay safe on our coastline. Further information on water safety can be found with our RNLI partners at https://ow.ly/txu250OLkfM

In a coastal emergency, dial 999 and ask for the Coastguard.

#RespectTheWater

Waves and wind safety advice from HM Coastguard

High tides and extra large waves are set for this weekend and the combination of tides, winds and large sea swells along Britain’s coastlines means HM Coastguard is asking people to take extra care and be ‘wind and wave safe’.

Although this week’s earlier storm weather warnings have been downgraded, HM Coastguard’s Tago Mcleod, who is based at Falmouth in Cornwall, says people should not relax and stay on safety alert while on the coast.

“The winds are still going to be strong and the mix of wind, bigger than usual tidal swells and large, unpredictable waves can very easily catch people out.

“It’s human nature to relax a little more when storm warnings have been downgraded but the real risks still remain. It’s why we’re asking everyone to take extra care and keep well away from breaking waves, piers and jetties and keep well back from cliff edges this weekend,” he said.

Wind and wave safety – top 5 safety tips

  1. Selfies; It’s not worth risking your life for ‘that selfie’. Keep off groynes, piers, jetties and harbour walls. Big waves can knock you over in a flash. If you can feel the spray, you’re too close.
  2. Wave dodging; playing ‘dares’ with waves is dangerous in the best of weathers. Rocks and walls can be slippery, often there’s nothing to grab hold of if you’re caught off balance and rogue waves and strong currents can sweep you out to sea in seconds.
  3. Doggie dont’s; do keep your canine friends close and on leads if you’re out on the cliffs or the coast. You never know when an ‘interesting’ smell or meeting another dog can lead to trouble. If your dog gets stuck or trapped, call the coastguard for help, we have teams out and about at all times, trained for fast response.
  4. Cliff crises; avoid a crisis on the cliffs by staying well away from the edges, especially in windy conditions when you and children are at risk of being caught off balance. During and after bad weather, cliff faces are especially unstable and landslides and rock falls are common.
  5. Keep in touch; keep a note of tide times so you don’t get trapped and take a fully charged mobile (ideally with a location or ‘find me’ app) so you can call for help if things go wrong. Let someone know where you’re going and when you’ll be back.

If you or anyone is in trouble on the coast, don’t delay calling for help.

It’s better to be safe than sorry. Call 999 and ask for the coastguard.

Search launched for windsurfer seen in difficulty near Cramond Island

A three-hour search was launched for a windsurfer who was seen in difficulty near Cramond Island.

Members of the public spotted the surfer near  at around 1pm on Tuesday and called the coastguard.

Rescue 177 from Prestwick searches near Silverknowes. (Picture: Michael Lindsay)

A spokesperson for the Forth Coastguard said “We received calls about a male Windsurfer who was having problems to the East of Cramond Island, we laucnehd the Queensferry Inshore Lifeboat, the all weather Lifeboat from Dunbar, Siera Oscar 10 (The Police search boat) and the Royal Navy search helicopter Rescue 177 was scrambled fromPrestwick. It would appear that the male my have made it ashore before our two hour search got underway.”

The RNLI from South Queensferry searches near Granton. (Picture: Michael Lindsay)

At 3.45pm, the search was stood down when the windsurfer was traced safe and well.

Emergency services open day this weekend

 

Blue Green light for McDonald Road event!

Hundreds of people are expected to attend the annual emergency services open day on Saturday (4 August). Hosted by Lothian and Borders Fire and Rescue Service at McDonald Road fire station, the free day out is one of the most popular in our events calendar.

Firefighter Neil Bertram, one of the event organisers, said: “The emergency services open day is always a great day out and it’s free! Last year we had more than 700 people through our doors at McDonald Road. This year the station will be open from 11am until 3.30pm.

“The Police, Scottish Ambulance Service and Coastguard will also be represented on the day. It’s a great opportunity to come along, see an operational station and find out more about the emergency services and the role they play in keeping communities safe.

“From our side we will have fire appliances on display.  The height appliance will be working throughout the event, our community safety vehicle (CSV) will also be used and staff from our Community Safety Function will be on hand to give advice about fire safety and answer questions from the public.  The training centre will be carrying out extinguisher and fire blanket demonstrations.  They will also provide access to the Breathing Apparatus (BA) pod to allow people to get a taste of navigating in zero visibility to rescue a casualty.

“We also hope to raise some money for two very special charities, The Fire Fighters Charity who are dedicated to helping firefighters, fire personnel and their families in their hour of need and Hillview Respite, a local initiative which provides residential respite care for disabled children in Edinburgh. Both charities will be running stalls on the day to raise funds.

“Hopefully the weather will be kind to us on the day and we would urge people to pop along for what promises to be a fun family day out.”

Lothian and Borders Fire and Rescue Service