One year old girl gets lost at sea and is found with her little boat a kilometer and a half from the coast
You can't fool about with the sea: a moment of inattention can be very costly, especially for children. And it was in Kelibia, a village on the northeastern coast of Tunisia where, fortunately, tragedy was avoided by a whisker: a child on a small inflatable boat was dragged away out to sea a kilometer and a half from the beach. Here the local civil protection units were called for an intervention that was truly incredible ...
A very remarkable rescue
A one-year-old little girl sailed undisturbed, out to sea,on her pink boat, completely alone. It was impossible for her to return to shore given the strong wind and the current. The inflatable, which was supposed to be a life-saving tool, turned out to be extremely dangerous. In a few seconds a tragedy could have occurred: even a wave a little higher than the others would have been enough to overturn the little one and her small boat.
On the beach, the parents became aware of the situation at last, but after useless searching they immediately alerted the rescuers who - fortunately - were very quick in coming. A motorboat and a jet ski immediately launched to rescue of the little girl who was now adrift on the high seas. Impossible to see it with the naked eye from the coast, if not with the classic baywatch binoculars.
Fortunately, the inflatable was not overturned by the waves, nor was it deflated due to the long stay at sea: the dinghy kept the little one afloat until rescuers arrived. The speed of the emergency response also ruled out the possibility of sunstroke for the little shipwrecked girl, who was immediately reported by her terrified parents.
The sea is unforgiving and it is, in fact, a good idea to always be vigilant when loved ones decide to take a refreshing dip in the water. Danger is always lurking. All the more reason that attention must be double when a child is alone in the waves. A change in the wind is enough to stir the sea, making the return to the shoreline almost impossible.
In these situations, inflatable boats or life jackets are not always efficacious against the seas' currents. The possibility of bathers being swept offshore or overturned by the waves is very high indeed. For these reasons, you cannot relax thinking that your children are equipped with a life-saving device, because, sometimes, the unexpected can happen.
Our little ones are best supervised with a watchful eye at all times. Stay alert.
