Jet ski rider with broken leg rescued by North Berwick lifeboat crews amid 'two-metre swell' from North Sea
Lifeboat volunteers were called to four incidents in six hours on Sunday
A jet ski rider who had broken their leg was among several people rescued by North Berwick lifeboat crews on Sunday.
The RNLI team said they were called to four incidents in six hours, amid tricky conditions caused by a two-metre swell from the North Sea.
A spokesperson said the crew was alerted at 11.35am to a jet ski rider who had suffered a leg injury after being thrown from the water craft coming off a wave on the north side of Craigleith island.
The casualty was riding around the islands off North Berwick as part of a group, who managed to help them onto another craft before it became clear they had seriously injured their leg.
RNLI crews brought them ashore and they were treated at the scene while waiting for an ambulance to arrive.
Under an hour later at 12.22pm, the crew were alerted to a jet ski colliding with rocks in the Fairway at the base of North Berwick’s harbour wall.
Lifeboat crews battled 1.5-metre waves to rescue the casualty, who was left shaken but not injured.
The spokesperson said all the riders in the incidents were properly equipped, wearing wetsuits and buoyancy aids and carrying phones and personal locator beacons.
As the crew were de-briefing the call out, they were tasked with a third incident, involving a child on a stand up paddleboard who was having difficulty getting back to shore.
Luckily, the child made it safely back to shore just as the crews were mobilising the lifeboat.
Crews were called out for a fourth time at around 5.06pm, after a 999 call reported a swimmer caught in a rip current in Milsey Bay.
The lifeboat made its way through breaking waves to the swimmer, who had been brought ashore by a paddleboarder.
The casualty was assessed by the North Berwick Coastguard Rescue Team before being passed into the care of the Scottish Ambulance Service.
Following the incidents, Duncan Barbour, the Water Safety Officer at North Berwick, said: “It’s really important when you set out on the water that you have the correct safety equipment.
“A waterproof means of contacting the Coastguard should things go wrong is vital, just as a buoyancy aid or life jacket is.’
“You also need to check the conditions and local hazards and crucially, understand whether they are suitable for your craft, and your experience.
“Just because it’s sunny and there isn’t much wind on land, doesn’t mean it’s the same offshore.
“Waves can be incredibly powerful. A square meter of water weighs a tonne, if that’s moving at say 15 mph like the waves were today, then that’s a lot of force when it hits you.”
The Scottish Ambulance Service has been approached for comment.