Positivity: ‘Right Suit Saved Life of Angler’
Sometimes what you do to prepare, saves you.
12:00 - 29 October 2007
An Angler swept into the sea near Aberdeen was today praised for wearing clothes which saved his life.
The man was trapped in a “melting pot” of water between two wedges of rock for 40 minutes before rescuers reach him.
And Maritime Rescue Institute lifeboat coxswain Hamish McDonald said: “This man cannot be commended enough for doing everything right. He was wearing a flotation suit which helped keep up his body temperature as well as helping with buoyancy.
“He also managed to grab on to his fishing bag which had also fallen into the sea. This acted like a liferaft for him.
“I’ve no doubt that suit played a major part in saving his life.
“That and being between two outcrops of rock where the biggest swell could not reach him. Like a melting pot but a safe one.”
The drama began yesterday around 3pm when police in Aberdeen got a 999 call from another angler fishing on rocks just south of Doonies near Old Portlethen.
On-shore coastguards guided the five-man crew of the MRI vessel to the spot where the stricken fisherman was clinging to rocks.
After getting him on board they sped back to Stonehaven where paramedics took him to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary under police escort.
He was detained overnight while he was treated for hypothermia. But his condition was not believed to be serious.
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