Person rescued from hull of capsized fishing boat 4nm offshore

A passing yacht saw the casualty waving for help and made a 'mayday' distress call, which was received by HM Coastguard. The coastguard immediately requested the launch of Swanage Shannon class all-weather lifeboat (ALB) and the volunteer crews' pagers were activated.

The lifeboat launched and plotted a route to the position given by the yacht, roughly 5nm away from the station. Best speed was made in a light/moderate sea state. While on route, the yacht informed the lifeboat that another fishing vessel had managed to recover the casualty from the barely floating upturned hull. A few minutes later the lifeboat was alongside and transferred the cold and shocked casualty to the warmth of the wheelhouse.

Coastguards and an ambulance were tasked to meet the lifeboat at Poole Quay yacht haven and 20 minutes later the lifeboat was tied up alongside, handing the casualty, now much warmer and uninjured, to the coastguard volunteers.

HM Coastguard were made aware of the position of the upturned hull so that suitable warnings to shipping could be broadcast.

With the situation now resolved, the lifeboat returned to Swanage for a wash down.

ALB Crew: (Coxn) Gavin Steeden, Robert Aggas, Steve Williams, Phil Palmer, Fergus Holley, Ben Bamber

Shore Crew: (Head Launcher) Neil Collings, (Winch) Gary Buglass, Richard Lloyd, Julian Vass, Archie Burgess

Key facts about the RNLI

The RNLI is the charity that saves lives at sea. Its volunteers provide a 24-hour search and rescue service around the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland coasts. The RNLI operates 238 lifeboat stations in the UK and Ireland and more than 240 lifeguard units on beaches around the UK and Channel Islands. The RNLI is independent of Coastguard and government and depends on voluntary donations and legacies to maintain its rescue service. Since the RNLI was founded in 1824, its lifeboat crews and lifeguards have saved over 146,700 lives.

Learn more about the RNLI

For more information please visit the RNLI website or Facebook, TikTok and YouTube. News releases, videos and photos are available on the News Centre.

Contacting the RNLI - public enquiries

Members of the public may contact the RNLI on 0300 300 9990 (UK) or 1800 991802 (Ireland) or by email.