A father and his two young sons are fortunate to be alive after falling off a jet ski on the River Wyre in Lancashire, according to HM Coastguard Fleetwood. The safety kill cord, which would have stopped the engine, was not attached, leaving the jet ski circling out of control.
The man, from Manchester, was riding with his sons aged one and eight when they fell into the tidal river on Saturday. The father swam to shore with the baby, while the eight-year-old was rescued by the Fleetwood to Knott End ferry.
Tony Cowell, captain of the ferry, described the rescue: 'We went to the father and the youngest child first. He managed to get his feet on to the sand and said: 'Get my little lad'.' The eight-year-old was 'a little bit upset' and passengers helped comfort him.
The coastguard stated: 'This incident could have so easily ended up as a multiple fatal incident.' They noted the man and older boy wore personal flotation devices instead of lifejackets, while the baby had a ring. They urged users to wear well-fitted lifejackets and use kill cords.
Mr Cowell added that the water was 'still at winter temperature' and the current was 'going at six knots'. The jet ski travelled 1.5-2 miles in 10 minutes before being recovered by a lifeboat. 'They had a very lucky escape,' he said.
