"Quick actions" save walker and dog's lives after getting stranded at sea

Saturday 02 September 2023

The "quick actions" of a dog walker who scrambled onto rocks with her pet after getting cut off by the tide while 200m from shore last night "undoubtedly saved their lives", rescuers have said.

The islander had been walking their dog around La Rocque when they got "caught out".

Stuck 200m from shore, the walker climbed onto rocks with their dog to avoid being taken out to sea and called the Coastguard.

The Jersey Fire and Rescue Inshore Lifeboat was sent to the area, but the tide led them to decide to launched from Seymour Slip.

A kayaker in the area had spotted the pair and stayed with them on the rocks until a passing vessel was able to rescue the islander and their dog "before they were washed off", Jersey Fire and Rescue said.

They were then transferred to the lifeboat, which arrived shortly after.

"...Thankfully apart from being cold, wet and a bit shaken, [the pair] were unharmed," according to the Fire Service.

The rescuers added that the, while "the area was known to the dog walker and they were simply caught out", the situation highlights "the importance of having a working mobile phone when out and about in areas below the high water marks, and letting someone know where you're going and what time you're returning".

They added: "[The dog walker's] quick actions in getting as high as possible and calling for assistance undoubtably saved their lives.

"We would also like to commend the actions of the kayaker and passing vessel who both played a major part in this rescue, thanks for your assistance."