Published Date:
18 March 2008
DRAMATIC video footage of a family stranded on the flooded Holy Island causeway has been released by the RAF crew which rescued them.
A Sea King helicopter from RAF Boulmer 202 Squadron was scrambled at 4.45pm on March 13, after controllers at RAF Kinloss were alerted to a car rapidly being submerged by the sea.
When the helicopter arrived minutes later, they found the four passengers - a man, two teenagers and their grandmother - sheltering in the refuge box.
They had attempted to cross the causeway an hour-and-a-half after the last safe crossing time.
Their vehicle was already up to its doors in sea-water, as gale-force winds whipped up the already high Spring tide.
The family was winched to the mainland, to await their car being recovered at low tide.
Salt water is likely to have left the vehicle badly damaged, however.
The images serve as a stark warning to others who ignore the tidal timetables and the numerous signs placed at the causeway end to alert motorists to the dangers.
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Last Updated:
18 March 2008 2:15 PM
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Source:
n/a
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Location:
Alnwick, Northumberland
