An unconscious male was rescued from Port Skillion beach, outside Douglas harbour.

Douglas RNLI, coastguards, police and paramedics all helped in the rescue, which took place this morning (Tuesday).

A Douglas RNLI spokesman said: ’Douglas RNLI volunteer crew were paged at 9.15am today to assist in a multi-agency call to recover an unconscious male from a beach.

’Coastguards and paramedics had secured the casualty on a backboard and stretcher on Port Skillion Beach just outside Douglas Harbour.

’Access to the beach is only via flights of steep steps at either end of the beach so the lifeboat was requested to evacuate the casualty from offshore.’

Deputy second coswain Tony Radcliffe took the all-weather lifeboat, Sir William Hillary, as close to the beach as the depth of water would allow then volunteer crew members Lavinia Washington and James Bettridge used the lifeboat’s daughter boat, an inflatable dinghy, to go ashore to recover the casualty to the lifeboat.

With the casualty safely transferred to the lifeboat, the dinghy and its crew also recovered, the lifeboat returned to Douglas, to the liner berth where the Coastguard and paramedics were waiting to transfer the casualty to an ambulance to be taken to hospital.

Lifeboat mechanic, Peter Cowin, said: ’The efficient way the crew handled themselves this morning is evidence of the regular training given by the RNLI, and in particular Lavinia who recently passed her casualty care assessment and took a place in the dinghy.’