Sennen Cove RNLI Rescues Six Kayakers Off Land’s End

RNLI volunteers from Sennen Cove launched at 11.47am today, Thursday 14th August, after HM Coastguard Falmouth received a call for help from six kayakers off Land’s End.

The group, made up of three adults and three children, had left Sennen Cove heading for Porthcurno. All were wearing buoyancy aids and had been given guidance for their journey.

While the conditions in Sennen Cove were fine, the strong tidal flow off Land’s End proved far more challenging. One of the kayaks capsized, throwing two children into the water.

Swift Response from RNLI Crew

The kayakers, equipped with mobile phones and other safety equipment, contacted HM Coastguard Falmouth to report the incident. Members of the public on the cliffs also saw what was happening and called the Coastguard, who issued a Mayday and tasked the RNLI.

The Tamar class all-weather lifeboat City of London III launched just seven minutes after the crew’s pagers sounded, under the command of Coxswain Nick Hichens with a team of five. Strong tidal currents had carried the kayakers a mile south of Longships lighthouse. By the time the lifeboat arrived, the children had been recovered onto a kayak but one adult remained in the water.

The RNLI crew recovered all six people and their kayaks. All casualties were wet, cold, shocked, but relieved to be on board.

Back to Safety

The lifeboat returned to Sennen Cove and was recovered up the long slip at 12.43pm, ready for the next service.

Coxswain Nick Hichens said:

“The Kayakers did everything right on the day but were still unfortunate to get caught out by the strong tidal flow. They were well equipped and able to make a call to the coastguard when help was needed. They stayed incredibly calm in a very stressful situation.

Our volunteer crew worked extremely well as a team to carry out a quick rescue. It’s times like this when our constant training proves its worth.”

📷Sennen Cove Tamar Class Lifeboat ' City of London III' - Credit: RNLI/Timothy Stevens