The volunteers who crew the North Berwick lifeboat, the RNLI’s D Class inshore lifeboat, SUNIJO, have launched three times since last Sunday.
The charity says the warmer weather has brought people out onto the water.
On 17 May a call came in at 7.16pm for the lifeboat to launch as a “personal water craft had broken just outside the fairway in North Berwick”. The person on the craft had the correct equipment including a buoyancy aid, handheld VHF radio, paddle and anchor which they had deployed as the wind was blowing them offshore.
The RNLI crew made a brief assessment and took the vessel under tow back to shore, where debris in the fuel was found to be the cause of the engine failure.
The second call on 22 May at 6.16pm involved a 999 call routed through Aberdeen Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre about a kayaker in the water. The kayak had sunk beneath the person leaving them in the water.
Several vessels responded to a Mayday call put out by HM Coastguard, including a passing yacht that recovered the casualty from the water shortly before the lifeboat arrived on scene.
A spokesperson for North Berwick RNLI said: “The casualty was taken on board the lifeboat and assessed before being returned to shore with their craft. The casualty was wearing a buoyancy aid and had a waterproofed means of calling for help which enabled a positive outcome from this service.”
The third call on 23 May came in at 6.47pm when members of the public saw a stand up paddle boarder being blown out to sea in the offshore wind.
An RNLI spokesperson said: “A thorough search of a large area offshore from North Berwick was conducted alongside Anstruther RNLI’s all-weather Shannon class lifeboat, the Robert and Catherine Steen. After four hours on the water the search was suspended as night had fallen and nothing had been found.”
North Berwick’s volunteer Lifeboat Operations Manager, Ricky Martin, said: “When the weather forecast is for good weather we always, understandably, see an increase in leisure traffic on the water.’
“Anyone who is heading out to sea, for a swim or sail or to fish from a kayak must ensure they have a lifejacket or buoyancy aid and that they carry a waterproofed means of calling for help.
“Check the weather, wind direction and tide times to make sure the conditions are suitable for your plan, if in doubt, don’t go out. Stand up paddleboarders especially should avoid offshore winds which they are particularly vulnerable to.’
“If you’re heading out on a power drive craft, check your engine is serviceable your fuel is fresh and charge your batteries.’
“In any coastal emergency dial 999 for the Coastguard or call them on VHF channel 16.”
More information on how to stay safe on the water is on the RNLI website.
