A boating trip off the Isle of Wight turned into a life-or-death situation for Rachael Perrin when she was swept overboard and left fighting for her survival in the English Channel.

Rachael, 51, narrowly escaped death after being swept overboard from a motor cruiser during a trip off the southern coast of the Isle of Wight earlier this year.

The incident occurred as Rachael and her partner, Mike, sailed from Portsmouth to Cherbourg.

Feeling seasick, she moved to the stern and was suddenly thrown into the cold water.

“It was by far the most awful moment I have ever experienced,” said Rachael, who had only started boating a year earlier.

After surfacing, she quickly realised her partner couldn't hear her over the engine noise.

Fortunately, Rachael was prepared. Her lifejacket automatically inflated, keeping her afloat, and she could call 999 for help using her mobile phone, which was secured in a waterproof case around her neck.

“If I did not have my phone, I think the length of time I would have been in the water means hypothermia would have killed me,” she said.

“The lifejacket kept me afloat, but without my phone, they would have found a dead body.”

HM Coastguard responded swiftly, deploying helicopters, a fixed-wing aircraft, Island RNLI lifeboats from Bembridge and Yarmouth and the independent crew from Sandown and Shanklin.

Rachael stayed on the phone, passing clues to her location as she drifted miles away from the Isle of Wight.

She recalled: “The fact that I could talk to someone who could give me a live update made the difference in stopping me freaking out.

“I knew they were looking for me, and they would find me. That was hugely comforting.”

After over two hours in the water, Rachael was finally spotted by a helicopter and rescued by a winch paramedic.

She was flown to St Mary’s Hospital, where she recovered after a night’s stay.

Reflecting on her ordeal, Rachael advised fellow boaters to always keep a mobile phone in a waterproof case, wear a properly fitted lifejacket, have a phone app or carry a Personal Locator Beacon (PLB) and ensure safety equipment is up to date.