There’s something deeply terrifying about fog. The creeping sense of fear and disorientation that comes when cold thick cloud wraps itself about you is chilling. What is familiar becomes unfamiliar. Horror sets in.
Dee estuary shore; the mountains of Wales are gone, shrouded in fog
This week a father and son were rescued by the RNLI after taking a walk on the sands around Hilbre island in the Dee estuary, which serves as the national border between England and Wales. They had hypothermia and were close to exhaustion when the crew found them and saved their lives. Having lost their way on mudbanks and sandbanks in freezing fog they had been almost swallowed up by the incoming tide, rising five centimetres a minute. Day had became night, visibility had fallen to 20 metres.
Eerie light on the foggy coast near West Kirby
For a while teams from the West Kirby and Hoylake RNLI crews were in contact with the men by mobile phone. First contact was made at 17.00 hours, flares were fired and a helicopter was scrambled but in the fog it took hours to seek out the pair. Rescue came at 20.00 when they were found up to their necks in perishingly cold seawater.
Life threatening fog creeps up the estuary
