A vessel’s missing lifejacket and 406 PLB started sending alerts, sparking an urgent search with nobody found in difficulty and nothing untoward.
A spokesman from Falmouth Coastguards added: “If someone accidentally activates a distress beacon, we would ask them to turn it off as quickly as possible and phone the coastguard to let us know it has gone off.
“We have to respond to these signals straight away because it could be a question of time”
For example, when a UK kayaker regained consciousness after being knocked out, he clung to his kayak and set off his PLB, using his mobile phone to call for help and be rescued.
Read more here:
https://www.falmouthpacket.co.uk/news/17653876.falmouth-coastguards-launch-emergency-operation/