A PADDLEBOARDER has told how she was almost swept to her death by a strong offshore wind that left her stranded at sea.

Natasha Baker was pushed 600 yards away from the shore and was unable to turn her board around due to the conditions.

The 24-year-old tired herself out by paddling without making headway before she panicked and began screaming for help.

Luckily for her a lifeguard back on the beach had spotted her through binoculars and called for help.

An RNLI lifeboat was launched and found a ‘tired and emotional’ Natasha stranded on her board.

She was wrapped in a blanket and taken back to the beach.

Natasha has now praised the RNLI for saving her life following the dramatic incident in Swanage Bay.

She said: “I can honestly say I have never been so scared.

“It was the lifeguard on the beach who saw me struggling through his binoculars, he realised I wasn’t making any progress and getting taken further out to sea and called it in to them.

“If he hadn’t been there, I dread to think what would have happened.”

Natasha, an NHS community worker from Gillingham, had gone to Swanage with her boyfriend to kayak and paddleboard.

When they entered the water - Natasha on her board and her partner in a kayak - the sea was still.

But she said within minutes a 20mph wind blew up, taking her out.

She said she entered the water before her boyfriend.

“I stopped and waited for him but I then realised that the water had started to get choppy and the wind and waves were

taking me out to sea quite quickly. I started to try and turn myself round, but couldn’t. I looked back and realised my boyfriend had turned round and was heading back to shore. At this point I had gone even further out. I started to shout out to him but he couldn’t hear me. I then started to really panic, shouting and screaming for help. I started to get emotional as I didn’t know how I was going to get back to shore or what was going to happen to me. I was losing the strength to keep trying to paddle. I am so grateful that the lifeguards were there.

A Swanage Lifeboat spokesman said: “She was tired and emotional when we got to her. She and her board were brought aboard the lifeboat and she was wrapped in a blanket to dry off.”