Scarborough man tells how he survived being stranded at sea
Michael Whitley told us his story on World Drowning Prevention Day.
Last updated 25th Jul 2025
A Scarborough man spoke to us about the terrifying moment he realised he might drown because he couldn't swim back to shore.
Michael Whitley had to be rescued by the RNLI last year. He was swimming with a friend when he realised he couldn't get back to the beach.
He's sharing his story to urge others to learn a life saving technique called "float to live"- which is how he survived. It's part of World Drowning Prevention Day.
"Even though you're having lots of thoughts about 'am I going to make it?', you can stay pretty calm and you're in quite a comfortable position, leaning back with your ears just in the water. So you're having to do minimal movement to keep in that safe, floaty position."
"The RNLI training clicked in. When you get into these situations, you need to try and keep calm and the float to live is something that I think saved my life."
World Drowning Prevention Day takes place annually on 25 July. Established by the World Health Organization in 2021, the aim of the day is to raise awareness of the impact drowning has on families and communities worldwide. It also seeks to inform people of the lifesaving interventions that can prevent drowning.