Swimmers prepare to take on the Humber for charity

The swimmers will take to the water this weekend to raise money for Humber Rescue

Twelve swimmers will dive into the Humber this weekend as part of an annual fundraiser.

It will mark the swim's 10th anniversary, and participants have raised nearly £22,000 so far this year for Humber Rescue.

They will be swimming half of the 2.2km (about 1.3-mile) course along the estuary – one of the most unpredictable stretches of water in the world due to the currents and weather.

Sarah Scholes, who is taking part in the swim on Sunday, said: "People have come back to swim every year so we have sort of become a little family."

Previously, they have swum from the Barton-upon-Humber side and under the bridge before finishing at the Humber Rescue base.

After completing six swims already this year, the group will be doing only half of the course on Sunday.

Over the 10 years, swimmers have raised more than £110,000 for the charity.

The swimmers have already completed six challenges this year

Humber Rescue will be watching over the swimmers, with three boats out on the water.

The independent charity was founded in 1989 and the lifeboat station opened in 1995. It had 129 callouts in 2023 and costs an average of £60,000 a year to run.

Sam Willis, a Humber Rescue volunteer, said: "It really helps and it takes the pressure off volunteers to fundraise so we can focus on training, maintenance of kit and responding to callouts.

"Without it, we would be quite stuck."

Also supporting the swim are Urban Attiva, Robie, The Hase, Studio Eleven, MRN and Hull City Ladies FC.

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