Dog floats three miles out to sea off UK coast: Bruce the Alsatian rescued off Bamburgh, Northumberland
A dog who floated three miles out to sea on an inflatable boat - watch the heartwarming moment Bruce the Alsatian was rescued off the UK coast.
The amazing moment a dog was found after floating miles out to sea off the UK coast was caught on camera. Bruce the Alsatian had travelled three miles off the shore of Bamburgh in Northumberland in a kayak when he was picked up by his rescuers.
Earlier in the day, the dog had been playing in the waves with his owner who had put him in an inflatable boat and swam beside him. However, disaster struck when a gust of wind washed Bruce out to sea.
His panicking owner raised the alarm and coastguards from nearby Seahouses scrambled a lifeboat to search for him on Sunday afternoon (June 7).
Bruce was eventually rescued by the two-man crew of Serenity Farne Islands Boat Tours. Video from the boat shows the moment Captain Jimmy Reid spotted the kayak floating out to sea.
He said: “My emotions definitely got the better of me when I finally spotted Bruce in the boat. I had a heart-wrenching fear the dog was going to go in the water and stay there. When we actually got him on board and knew he was safe and knew the hard bit was over, we were both ecstatic.”
The crew leapt into action after hearing the alert come through their radio as they made their way back after a tour of the Farne Islands.
Bruce’s owner had desperately tried to swim after the boat as it washed out to sea but had been forced to turn back. Jimmy added: “Bruce’s owner had tried to swim out to catch the kayak but did the right thing by turning round. It could easily have been a multi-casualty thing if he had kept going. When we found the boat we tried to get a harness around Bruce but it just slipped off and he fell into the water.
"Luckily my crewman Aaron reached down and grabbed him by the scruff of the neck and hauled him on board. If he hadn't grabbed him like that it would have been the end of any sort of rescue effort."
Bruce was hypothermic but the crew wrapped him in towels to warm him up before sailing back to the shore where he was reunited with his relieved owner.