BARMOUTH RNLI have issued a safety message after 15 people were rescued from dinghies, kayaks and a lilo in a single day.

On Tuesday, 19 July, the hottest day of the year so far, saw a series of shouts for the volunteer lifeboat crew to people on inflatables who had got into difficulty, mostly due to the offshore wind.

The spate of incidents has led to Barmouth Coxswain issuing safety advice for people visiting the beach this summer.

The crew’s busy day started at 12.15pm when Barmouth RNLI’s inshore lifeboat was launched to a dinghy opposite Barmouth Primary school.

The male occupant was outside the boat trying to propel the dinghy with his legs while his girlfriend tried to row back to shore.

When the lifeboat arrived on scene at 12.25pm the casualties had reported that they had fallen asleep.

Before the lifeboat crew had returned them to shore the coastguard alerted them to another dinghy slightly south and again in difficulty.

After returning the first couple to shore the lifeboat soon recovered the second dinghy before another call came in from the coastguard which was again another couple in difficulty opposite the boathouse unable to get back to shore.

The lifeboat also picked up another dinghy with three people on board towards the north end of the promenade.

At 1.35pm they were requested to re-launch to another dinghy 100m offshore northwest of the boathouse, with two people on board.

Again before the casualties were brought ashore the lifeboat was tasked to Fairbourne with reports of another dinghy in trouble with another three people on board, although they turned out not to be in trouble.

At 3pm the volunteer crew administered first aid at boathouse to a man who had been unlucky to find a weaver fish with his foot and was in agony. He was treated with hot water for his foot.

At just before 3.45pm the team were paged again to Fairbourne but this time tasked to two inflatable kayaks.

Barmouth RNLI Coxswain Pete Davies said: “This was an exceptionally busy day for our inshore lifeboat volunteers who rescued or assisted no fewer than 15 people, all of whom had got into difficulty using inflatables.

“Blow-up toys and airbeds are designed for pools, not the sea where they can easily be swept out.

If you do use them at the beach, then ensure children are closely supervised, keep near the shore, only use them between the red and yellow flags, always follow the lifeguard’s advice, do not take them out in big waves and never use them when orange windsock is flying, as this indicates offshore winds which will blow inflatables further out to sea.”