Oban’s volunteer coastguard team will be practising specialist water rescue skills on Saturday following six deaths round the UK coast at the weekend.
A mother and son died when a day out to Aberdeen beach turned into a double tragedy.
Julie Walker went in the water to try to rescue six-year-old Lucas after he fell into the sea during a family trip to the esplanade.
In separate incidents, a woman died in Jersey, two people drowned in Cornwall and a man died on the Essex coast.
Oban Coastguard Rescue Team was also called to the scene of a horrific accident last month when two children drowned after the car they were travelling in plunged into the deep water of a freshwater loch.
Station officer Iain MacKinnon said: “The Oban team members are equipped for water rescue, we have got dry suits and because we can enter the water there are a range of techniques to practice.
“We are going to do it on Corran Esplanade on the sandy area out towards Corran Ledge at the entrance to the bay.
“During rescues we use anything that’s nearby. The rail along the sea wall will be used for safety lines. In poor conditions if there is somebody stuck on a pier or pontoon we can go out to then while attached to the pier.
“We practice these things all the time, but we are having a special day to review our techniques to keep up competency of the reaction at any time.
“Unfortunately six people died around the UK coast at the weekend, so it is quite appropriate that we do it. The weather in the summer time seems to be much worse than it was. It is good to practice all these techniques to keep us bang up to date.”
