A tragic incident resulted in the death of a man when two crew members of a fishing boat fell overboard, prompting a large-scale emergency response. The distress call was issued on Sunday from a vessel located 14 miles off the shore of Newbiggin in Northumberland. Following the mayday alert, a significant emergency operation was initiated to rescue the two individuals.
The UK-registered boat Fortitude made the distress call just before 4.20 pm, leading to a swift response from various emergency services including the RNLI, the Coastguard, the North East Ambulance Service, the Great North Air Ambulance Service, and Northumbria Police.
One individual was transferred to Northumbria Specialist Emergency Care Hospital for further medical attention, while unfortunately, one man lost his life, with the authorities informing his next of kin. Police stated that there were no suspicious circumstances surrounding the tragic death.
Northumbria Police officers are cooperating with the Marine Accident Investigation Branch to investigate the incident further. The authorities confirmed the man’s death at sea off the coast of Blyth on Sunday, January 11, reiterating that there were no suspicious elements involved. Rescuers had to navigate through 4-meter-high waves to reach the distressed men in the water.
A representative from Tynemouth RNLI mentioned that their teams were tasked to respond to reports of two individuals overboard from a fishing vessel 14 miles offshore. After battling through challenging conditions for approximately five hours, the lifeboat crew successfully assisted the casualty vessels and returned to the station.
The Coastguard reported that they received a mayday call from the fishing vessel, indicating that two crew members had fallen overboard. A coordinated response involving multiple agencies was promptly mobilized to the scene, including search and rescue helicopters, fixed-wing aircraft, and RNLI lifeboats from Amble and Tynemouth.
The North East Ambulance Service dispatched multiple resources to the scene, coordinating with RNLI rescue crews at Blyth Harbour to provide medical assistance and transportation for one patient to Northumbria Specialist Emergency Care Hospital.