A COUPLE who nearly drowned during a holiday on the North Yorkshire coast are urging people to support the lifesavers of the RNLI.

Louisa Barrow and Peter Severs were on a camping holiday at Staithes, near Whitby, almost died after they were dragged into the North Sea.

They were walking along the north pier last August when they were hit by a huge wave which hurled them into the water.

“The wave hit us like a train. It all went black and then I heard Louisa screaming ‘I can’t swim, don’t let me drown’,” recalled Peter at his home in Bury.

A rope was thrown to Louisa by a local man and she was helped up the pier ladder. However, Peter had broken his thigh bone in the fall and couldn’t scale the ladder and was being repeatedly submerged by the waves.

The RNLI’s lifeboat Pride of Leicester was launched into a heavy swell. On his third approach, helmsman Lee Jackson manoeuvred the lifeboat into a safe position and crewmember Steve Iredale pulled Mr Severs on-board to safety.

“I honestly thought that we were going to die,” said Louisa. “The RNLI lads were amazing. They saved our lives, simple as that.”

The couple have since become keen supporters of the RNLI, which is launching a national fundraising drive, Mayday, on Friday.

“I know first-hand the vital work that the RNLI provides. If it wasn’t for their dedicated volunteers, Peter and I simply wouldn’t be alive today,” said Louisa.

“I would urge everyone to get involved or pop some spare change into one of the collection boxes.

“We are testament to the fact that you never know when you might need the services of the RNLI and that anyone can get into difficulty on the coast.”

For more information on how to get involved, to make a donation or to see what’s happening locally across the Bank Holiday weekend visit RNLI.org/mayday