Woman in her 40s is in ’life-threatening condition’ in hospital after she was found ‘unresponsive in the water’
- A woman was found unresponsive in the water in Portsmouth Harbour
- The UK Coastguard and Military Police were called to the scene today
- She is in a life-threatening condition in hospital, ambulance service said
A woman in her 40s is fighting for her life in hospital after she was found unresponsive in Portsmouth Harbour today.
She is now in a life-threatening condition in hospital, according to the South Central Ambulance Service (SCAS).
The UK Coastguard, Military Police, a coastguard rescue helicopter and Gosport and Fareham independent lifeboat were all called to the scene in Portsmouth today.
The woman was allegedly trying to take a picture while standing in front of the hovercraft as it headed into Clearance Pier, Portsmouth
The woman was dragged under the boat and her lifeless body was ejected out of the rear of the craft, reports suggested.
A spokesman for SCAS told MailOnline: ‘The incident in Old Portsmouth earlier was in relation to a woman in her 40s who was found unresponsive in the water by the Coastguard and recovered to Camber Dock Lifeboat Jetty where they were met by our team comprising two ambulance crews, a paramedic team leader and an emergency doctor.
‘After initial treatment the patient was then taken to the Queen Alexandra Hospital where she was handed over to colleagues in the emergency department in a life-threatening condition.’
Staff onboard desperately tried to carry out an emergency shutdown.
The woman, thought to have been unconscious, has been dragged from the water and CPR was administered.
The UK Coastguard, Military Police, a coastguard rescue helicopter, Gosport and Fareham independent lifeboat were all called to the scene in Portsmouth today
James Baggott, the coxswain of Gosport and Fareham Independent lifeboat service, told MailOnline: ‘We were tasked at 17.30 to a person in the water near Portsmouth Harbour.
‘We launched within six minutes and we were on scene four minutes later. The causality was recovered from the water.
‘One of my crew members is a Hampshire paramedic. He worked on the casualty with CPR with another of our crew members.
‘He transferred that casualty into the hands of the ambulance service. The helicopter team, Portsmouth coastguard rescue, and Hampshire police all attended as well.
‘The casualty condition is unknown.’
A spokesman from the Maritime and Coastguards Agency said: ‘At around 5.30pm on Saturday 24 April, HM Coastguard received multiple 999 calls about an incident near the hovercraft slipway in Southsea, Portsmouth.
‘Portsmouth coastguard rescue team, Gosport independent lifeboat and the search and rescue helicopter from Lee-on-Solent were sent, in addition to MOD Police vessels from Portsmouth Harbour and the South Central Ambulance Service. A woman was pulled from the water and passed into the care of the ambulance service.’
More to follow.