Fisherman cut off by night-time tide rescued by helicopter

A fisherman cut off by the tide at the bottom of a steep cliff on the Solway Coast had to be rescued by helicopter.

The incident happened at about 22:55 on Friday near Auchenlarie in Dumfries and Galloway between Gatehouse of Fleet and Creetown.

Members of the Kirkcudbright and Isle of Whithorn Coastguard Rescue teams were sent to the scene where they were joined by the RNLI lifeboat from Kirkcudbright.

Due to the state of the sea and the area in which the man had become stranded it was deemed unsafe to carry out the rescue by boat and the coastguard helicopter from Prestwick was called out to take him to safety.

A coastguard statement said the casualty had been airlifted to the shoreline where he was passed over to the local teams who checked on his welfare and "gave advice".

The teams were stood down at 01:15 on Saturday and returned to base.

Coastguard advice when going to a coastal location is to check the weather forecast and tide times before setting off and take a fully charged mobile.

"Explore as the tide is going out and make sure you have time to get back as it comes in," it added.

"Make sure you know where all the exit points are, if you're visiting a beach or bay.

"Keep an eye on which direction the tide is heading - walking further along may not be an option as the water can come in along channels and block your way."

It also advised anyone heading out alone to tell someone what time they would be back and, if trapped by the tide, try to find a safe location and call 999 and ask for the coastguard.