Swanage RNLI volunteer crew rescue stricken yacht on Mayday bank holiday
The Mayday bank holiday got off to an early start for the Swanage RNLI volunteers when the pagers sounded at 8am
Solent Coastguard requested the launch of the all-weather lifeboat (ALB) to assist a 9 metre yacht that was fouled on a lobster pot marker buoy not far from St Albans Head.
The stricken yacht crew had issued a 'pan pan’ and were unable to free themselves. The lifeboat slipped its mooring at around 8.15am and was alongside the casualty a little over 15 minutes later.
The Coxswain, Dave Turnbull, was able to hold the lifeboat in position alongside the yacht, placing two volunteer lifeboat crew aboard the stricken yacht to help release the yacht’s propeller from the line and secure a tow when it became clear it was not possible to remove all the line.
Dave Turnbull said: 'The manoeuvrability of the new state-or-the-art Shannon class lifeboat came in to its own, enabling me to quickly and safely come alongside the stricken yacht.'
The yacht was secured to the RNLI mooring in Swanage Bay and a local diver offered to clear the obstruction from the yacht a little later in the day.
The volunteer lifeboat crew were then free to return the lifeboat to its mooring and enjoy their Bank Holiday.
Notes to editors
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For more information contact Becky Mack, volunteer lifeboat press officer at Swanage RNLI, at [email protected] or 07812 558487 or Emma Haines, RNLI Public Relations Manager, on 07786 668847 or [email protected]
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The RNLI charity 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 146,000 lives.
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