One dead and two others injured after climbers fall into freezing sea off British coast
A man has died and two others have been sent to hospital after they fell into the sea while climbing off the British coast.
The alarm was raised at 4pm on Thursday at St Govan’s Head in Pembrokeshire, causing a multi-agency emergency on the Welsh coast.
Boats, helicopters, various rescue teams and local police all mobilised to save the climbers.
A rescue operation was launched with a spokesman for HM Coastguard saying: “HM Coastguard are responding to an incident involving three climbers at St Govans Head in Pembrokeshire on February 12.
“First alerted at around 4pm, Coastguard rescue teams from Fishguard, St Govans and Tenby have been sent alongside an HM Coastguard helicopter, an Irish Coastguard helicopter, Wales Air Ambulance and an RNLI lifeboat from Angle.”
However, in an update around 3.30pm, Dyfed-Powys Police confirmed one of the climbers had been found dead at the scene.
The force said the death is not being treated as suspicious.
It is understood the climber’s next of kin have been informed.
The three climbers fell into the sea at St Govan’s Head in Pembrokeshire
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A spokesman said: “Dyfed-Powys Police were contacted by the ambulance service around 4.25pm, Thursday February 12, reporting concerns for the welfare of three individuals at St Govan’s Head, Pembrokeshire.
“Officers were deployed to the location alongside multiple other agencies.
“Two were taken to hospital for treatment for injuries not believed to be life-threatening.
“Sadly, one person was pronounced dead at the scene.”
St Govan’s Head lies within the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park, where dramatic limestone cliffs rise to around 40 metres (131ft) above the sea.
The area boasts roughly 300 established climbing routes, some rated above “Hard Very Severe”, according to the British Mountaineering Council.
However, certain sections contain unstable rock, and parts of the cliffs are closed to climbers during the spring and summer to protect nesting seabirds.
A 4.4-mile circular route leads to the isolated chapel concealed near the shoreline. The descent involves a challenging climb down worn stone steps before reaching the coast.
It is not yet clear whether the three casualties were on the cliff face itself, at the top of the cliffs, or elsewhere in the area when the incident happened.
Local visitors reported seeing multiple emergency vehicles and helicopters arriving at the scene, with rescue teams coordinating along the cliffs.
A spokesman from the RNLI said an all-weather lifeboat launched to a multi-agency call from the Angle Lifeboat Station on the Angle Peninsula in Pembrokeshire.
