FURNESS coastguard is urging the public to always wear a life jacket after a man was rescued from the water.

Coastguard teams were called out at 1.47pm on Tuesday afternoon following reports of a collision between a dinghy and a yacht off Roa Island.

While on route to the incident, the emergency team was informed by the Coastguard Operations Centre, based in Holyhead, that one person from the dinghy had fallen into the water.

The man was then recovered from the water by a local fisherman.

He was later assessed by paramedics from North West Ambulance Service and had no serious injuries.

Two people who had been aboard the yacht had safely arrived onto the shore with no injuries or damage to their vessel.

A spokesman from Furness Coastguard described the incident as a ‘very lucky outcome’ for a serious incident.

He said: “Furness Coastguard were paged today at 1.47pm after reports of a collision between a dinghy and a yacht off Roa Island.

“As the team were on route to the scene an update came through from the Coastguard Operations Centre, based in Holyhead, stating that one person from the dinghy had been recovered from the water by a member of the public.

“The casualty was quickly rescued by a local fisherman. Luckily the casualty was wearing a life jacket.

“Once on scene, the team established that there were two persons on the yacht who had come ashore.

“Fortunately they were not injured and reported no damage to their vessel. The person from the dinghy was being assessed by the paramedics from North West Ambulance Service with no serious injuries.

“A very lucky outcome to what could have been an extremely serious incident.

“We would like to thank the member of the public for their fast actions.

“ Furness Coastguard would like to remind people of the safety message: a life jacket is useless unless worn.

“If in danger around the coast, or you think someone else is, dial 999 and ask for the Coastguard.”