82. Cold and Alone: Sheena Thompson

When winds pushed paddleboarder Sheena Thompson further and further out to sea, she shouted to her husband, who was on shore. Worryingly, he couldn’t hear her cries for help

While at the beach near Wick in Scotland, Sheena Thompson took her new paddleboard into the water, with the intention of staying in for just a few minutes. But the wind was much stronger than she anticipated, and she quickly started drifting out to sea. With no lifejacket or mobile phone, and too far out for her husband to hear her shouting for help, Sheena was in trouble.

Hear Sheena relive the terrifying moment when she lost control of her paddleboard. She also shares important guidance for staying safe on a paddleboard – things she wishes she had known before heading out that day.

200 Voices is produced by Adventurous Audio for the RNLI

Interview by James Dwyer

Soundtrack composed and performed by Jon Nicholls

The RNLI is a charity celebrating 200 years of saving lives at sea - find out more at RNLI.org/200