Bridlington, Humberside, saw north westerly winds and heavy showers on Sunday 29 August, conditions that tempted a couple of windsurfers to Fraisthorpe Beach but then one lost his board ...

Following a report that a man had been in the water for some time and was now missing, Humber Coastguard wasted no time in alerting Bridlington Lifeboat Operations Manager Steve Kinroy, who set the pagers off at 3.40pm to launch their inshore D class lifeboat Windsor Spirit.

Some of the lifeboat crew were at home but Crew Member Jamie McHale was working on the foreshore so it only took 3 minutes to get to the station. First through the door were Helmsman Stuart Tibbett, Dave McKendrick and Jamie, followed by Sam Waddington. Stuart needed his most experienced crew for the conditions but these had less than 1 year’s service each. He knew he couldn’t wait for other crew though: ‘With a person in the water, we needed to go immediately and I knew that they were more than capable, even though this was only Dave’s second shout and Jamie’s fifth.’

Jamie and Dave got kitted up for the boat and Sam for the launching tractor. Driving the tractor cautiously to the water’s edge, they still had a long push to get the boat afloat with the state of the tide and no other beach crew to help. Once in the water, Stuart quickly made his way to the last-known position of the windsurfer but couldn’t spot anyone.

Jamie contacted the Coastguard but they reported that the surfer had not been seen for some time. With no definite location, Helmsman Tibbett and the crew increased the search area but found it difficult to see in the surf and spray.

Thankfully, they managed to glimpse someone struggling to help another person in the distance. The Helmsman sped to the scene and deftly came alongside two windsurfers. Checking one of them was the missing surfer, and that the second was happy to make his way ashore safely, the lifeboat crew notified Humber Coastguard they had located the casualty. By now the wind was gusting to force 8 and the sea was rough, with a 2m swell, and the station's all-weather lifeboat was at the ready.

Stuart remembers: ‘He only had a wetsuit on and no buoyancy aid so used his sail to keep him afloat. He looked tired and certainly very relieved to see us.’ Jamie and Dave helped pull the 46-year-old from Sheffield aboard and, as he had been in the water for about 30 minutes, promptly checked he didn’t need any medical attention.

Bringing the sail onboard, a gust of wind caught it and thumped Stuart on the head so they swiftly put it back in the water to prevent any injuries. Not wanting to leave his sail, the windsurfer assured the crew he could derig it. Securing a rope to the mast to prevent it drifting away, the crew kept a close eye on him as he sorted it out.

With the man’s safety being his top priority, and knowing it would be a wet, cold, bumpy ride, Stuart insisted they take the surfer ashore immediately. Handing him over at Auburn Farm to waiting coastguards, the lifeboat crew then went back to look for his board to eliminate the chance of it being a hazard to other shipping or the possibility of them being called out again.

But the weather was worsening – waves more than 2m high were breaking over the lifeboat. After about a mile, the Helmsman realised they shouldn’t be out there. If he continued he would be putting Windsor Spirit and his crew in danger: ‘The conditions were the worst I’ve taken an inshore lifeboat out in, in 20 years. It would have been madness to carry on.’

Passing over the helm to Jamie, telling him to keep in front of the breaking waves, Stuart struggled to let the Coastguard know they were terminating the search: ‘When I lifted my visor to speak, the wind was taking my breath away.’

With the lifeboat working at its limit, Steve Kinroy recalls: ‘The all-weather lifeboat was on standby if needed but Stuart was confident they would get to the nearest recovery site at Fraisthorpe safely in the next 10 minutes.’

Taking the helm again, Stuart gingerly made his way back at only 4 knots. Jamie comments: ‘As we had virtually zero visibility with spray whipping across the boat, Dave and I kept a look out for any hazards.’ The mobile coastguard unit also watched them all the way, ready to request the Mersey class if needed.

Safely ashore at 4.35pm, Jamie comments: ‘This was my first service recovering someone from the water so I feel very proud.’ After his second shout, Dave reflects: 'I never thought about my inexperience – we practise regularly so I was confident with my fellow crew.’ And when asked how he felt, Stuart concludes: ‘Glad. Glad we recovered the casualty, glad I made the right decisions and glad we’re back safe.’