During our swift water rescue training on the River Dee at Llangollen today, the water rescue team was contacted at 16:15 by one of the raft photographers working on the river, to alert them of a water-related incident which had occurred downstream.

An inflatable raft on a commercial outing had flipped at Town Falls/Dragons Tooth area with one of the customers sustaining an injury as he was thrown from the raft and into the River Dee. The team members present mobilised in our BM5 Minibus down to the area of Llangollen town centre, and liaised with one of the raft guides involved.

With easier access off the river further downstream, and the casualty recovered back on-board the raft by the raft guide and other customers, it was decided to float the casualty 150m further downstream on the raft, where bank access was considerably easier.

Team members present assessed the casualty and due to the possibility of spinal injury the decision was made to call for an ambulance, with a Welsh Ambulance Service RRV arriving on scene at 16:44 followed by an Emergency Ambulance a few minutes later. The casualty was then placed onto an WAS longboard and carried the short distance from the raft to the waiting ambulance, for onward treatment at Wrexham Hospital.