An army veteran who was trying to break the world record for the longest solo stay on an uninhabited islet in the North Atlantic has been rescued.
Chris Cameron made a mayday call 32 days into his planned 60 day stay on Rockall after bad weather almost swept him off the 25m by 22m rock overnight and wind and waves damaged much of his equipment, an expedition representative said.
The 53-year-old, who lives in Wiltshire, was hoping to break the record of 45 days set by Nick Hancock in 2014 and raise £50,000 for the Royal Navy and Royal Marines Charity as well as the ABF the Soldiers' Charity.
He was winched from the 17m high islet, which lies 229 miles from the Outer Hebrides, by a coastguard helicopter before 6pm yesterday evening.
A statement published on Mr Cameron's JustGiving fundraising page yesterday reads: "Well today hasn't gone to plan. As you may know, Cam was forced to abort the expedition and declare a "Mayday" call today (28/06/2023) which triggered an emergency response from multiple vessels, plus rotary and fixed wing aircraft from HM Coastguard.
"Cam was successfully recovered by helicopter and is back on dry land, has had a cup of tea and is in remarkably high spirits given his day's adventure."
Mr Cameron had landed on the remote islet in May and was living in a small portable hut called a landpod.
Earlier this month he told The Times he found the "cold and misty" nights and the "stinking" guano that forms a glossy, slippery sheen over the rock made his challenge particularly tough.
He said: "I tend to stay in the landpod if it's like that as it's too risky otherwise."
Mr Cameron's pod was fixed on a part of the islet called Hall's Ledge, which lies near the top of Rockall and measures 4m by 1.5m.
His food consisted of Ministry of Defence (MoD) ration packs, which he said were "fantastic" and "much better than they were when I served in the infantry".
Harry Brayford, expedition communications and shoreside manager, confirmed he spoke to Mr Cameron before and after the rescue.
He said: "I spoke to Cam at 8.30am BST on Wednesday and we discussed the forecast for the coming days.
"It was apparent Cam had suffered a really rough night and we needed to make a quick decision on whether to abort the expedition or push on.
"We looked at a number of options to safely extract Cam if required, but it quickly became apparent the most appropriate option was for him to issue a 'mayday' call, which was picked up by HM Coastguard at Stornoway."
He said the coastguard co-ordinated the rescue mission and deployed both vessels and aircraft.
"He was winched onto the coastguard helicopter just before 6pm BST, and then flown back to dry land."
Mr Brayford thanked the coastguard on behalf of Mr Cameron for rescuing him.
He added: "It's disappointing to have to abort such an immense expedition, and whilst it was not an easy decision to make, it was the right one without question."
He said Mr Cameron was very much looking forward to a beer and a proper bed.
A statement from Mr Cameron's family on his expedition Facebook read: "We are hugely proud of all his achievements, but also that he had the courage to make what must have been a very difficult decision in the face of such dreadful weather.
"We are looking forward to welcoming him home and hope that any future adventures will be a little less risky."
His family joked: "Why couldn't he just have bought a sports car in the first place?"
A documentary about Mr Cameron's adventure, named Rockall, The Edge of Existence, is in the making.
Aaron Wheeler, director of the documentary, said: "We're glad Cam is safely back on dry land and look forward to watching through the footage that Cam recorded during his occupation to tell the story of his adventure."
Donations can still be made via Just Giving.
