Dramatic interruption to lifeboat fundraiser

drama at Oban as kayakers get into whirlpool trouble

By Iain Ramage

Published:

A fundraising open day at the Oban lifeboat station was dramatically interrupted on Saturday when the craft and her seven-man crew were called out to rescue two kayakers who drifted close to a notorious whirlpool.

One of the well-equipped kayakers used a VHF radio to raise the alarm at about 2pm after his companion slipped into the water in gusty conditions in the infamous Straights of Corryvreckan, between the islands of Jura and Scarba.

Initially, the lifeboat crew did not appear to be required because there were other craft in the area, but it soon emerged the pair had miscalculated their position and were several miles off their intended course.

The kayaker overboard managed to make it to shore, but the men were unsure of their whereabouts. They were eventually spotted on a south-east shore of Scarba by a Royal Navy 177 rescue helicopter tasked from Prestwick.

A winchman was lowered to ensure they were unharmed before the Oban lifeboat ferried the men and their kayaks back to their start point of Loch Melfort. The pair are understood to be aged in their late 30s and from the Manchester area.

Oban coxswain Ronnie MacKillop said: “Corryvreckan is an area of very strong tidal streams which are quite manageable if people are aware of those conditions, but if people are unaware of those conditions there is certainly a possibility of them encountering problems.

“The two guys were well equipped, but just caught out by the very strong tidal streams in that area, probably. They were fine, but probably a wee bit shaken up. They were quite grateful to us.”

Despite the drama, the lifeboat station’s open day raised more than £1,000.

Corryvreckan is a natural phenomenon which is visible from the island shore when, twice a day, an ocean tidal surge of water is funneled between the coast of Kintyre and the Isle of Jura.

Author George Orwell, who stayed on Jura while writing his classic novel 1984, escaped unscathed when his small boat was drawn into the whirlpool and capsized.

Others have not been so fortunate. One of two canoeists who capsized just to the east of Corryvreckan in April last year died after being airlifted to hospital.

Mr MacKillop added: “I would say to anybody going to sea, especially in that area, to take the time to try and learn a bit about the area you’re proceeding into and try and understand what the potential is in terms of the weather and what the tidal streams actually are and whether your boat is the right vessel for that area. As always, anybody using the sea should make sure you have a VHF radio and that you know how to use it. Have the right safety equipment in terms of flares and so on, and always let somebody know what your intended plans are and have a contingency in place so that if something happens you will be missed.”