A call has been made this week for more lifeguards to be employed on Tenby's beaches. County councillor Michael Williams has written to Pembrokeshire County Council with the request that lifeguards be on duty not just at peak holiday periods, but at busy Bank Holiday weekends as well. The appeal from Clr. Williams comes following an incident on Saturday when a family of five from Llanelli got into difficulties whilst body boarding off the resort's Castle Beach shortly before midday. A member of the public raised the alarm and the resort's inshore lifeboat was duly launched to go to their aid. The inshore crew recovered the family, with the coastguard also attending, to give suitable safety advice on safe use of body boards. "The family were fortunate that a member of the public saw what was happening and alerted the lifeboat crew and coastguard," said Clr. Williams. "There were no warnings of any kind about the strong off-shore winds, but if lifeguards had been in place this near tragedy would not have happened," continued Clr. Williams. Mr. Bobby James, of Tenby RNLI, said that the family were lucky that a member of the public had acted so responsibly and quickly "The person who spotted the family in trouble immediately ran around to the new lifeboat station and attracted the attention of a personnel member as to what was happening," he explained. "The ILB was launched and reached the family, who had been swept further out towards St. Catherine's Island by the strong riptide, within a minute. "They were very fortunate that they had been spotted; it was just fate that day," he added. Later that day, a similar incident occurred when two local 12-year-old boys, body boarding, got into difficulty off St. Catherine's Island. Said coastguard sector manager for South Pembs., Dave Miller: "The two boys who were surfing got caught out by the strong tidal flow and were swept dangerously close to the rocks of the island. "One of the boys managed to climb on to one of the rocks and although the ILB was launched and the coastguard was alerted, the boys had already managed to get themselves back to Castle Beach unaided. They were a little frightened, but sustained no injuries." The Whitsun weekend proved a busy time for the emergency rescue services, as on Saturday evening, a man who was rock climbing at Penny Hall Bay, St. Govan's Head, fell 15-feet, sustaining a serious ankle injury. Coastguard units from St. Govan's, Manorbier and Tenby, attended the scene, with the rescue helicopter from RAF Chivenor flying the injured climber to Withybush Hospital. Meanwhile, Tenby's all-weather lifeboat, the RFA Sir Galahad, was called to St. Govan's on Bank Holiday Monday, when a small cabin cruiser, carrying two persons, suffered engine failure. The lifeboat duly towed the vessel called Razamataz to Saundersfoot where the two people on board were landed safely ashore. Tenby coastguards were also called out later that evening when a man from Cheshire became unwell at Tenby Harbour. Coastguards administered first aid to the 44-year- old man before the arrival of the ambulance crew.
