Overview

• HM Coastguard received reports at 7:56 p.m. of a sailing vessel drifting toward rocks at King Edward’s Bay, prompting a multi-agency response.
• RNLI crews from Tynemouth and Cullercoats boarded the grounded yacht, cut guard rails to reach the casualty, and transferred him to shore for medical care.
• The man, described by responders as fatigued, was handed to the North East Ambulance Service and taken to Northumbria Specialist Emergency Care Hospital.
• Police requested an Army Explosive Ordnance Disposal team, which removed black powder from the vessel and returned it to EOD barracks.
• The Tynemouth Volunteer Life Brigade and Coastguard teams secured the yacht on the south side of the bay, remaining on scene until 4:45 a.m. with support from local police and fire crews.