On 22 August at 0650 the RNLI Humber Lifeboat crew eventually made it back to station after 14 hours at sea.
The Lifeboat crew based at Spurn point were originally called out the previous day at around 1600. A lone Yachtsman had put in a distress call to Humber Coastguard who coordinate search and rescue on the East coast.
The Rescue Helicopter was originally launched to locate the casualty and found the disabled yacht some 61 nautical miles offshore. The Helicopter spoke to the gentlemen on board who explained he had taken on quite a lot of water in bad weather through the night and his yachts engine was now not working. He was happy and fit enough to stay aboard but would need a tow back to safety.
It was at this point the coastguard spoke to the RNLI crew and requested the launch of the all-weather lifeboat. At 61 miles the Lifeboat would take the best part of three hours to reach the man and his vessel so on route the crew worked where the vessel was likely to drift to. Once nearing the area the Lifeboat managed to contact the casualty and use its direction finding equipment to confirm the yachts location.
Once on scene lifeboat crew were put aboard to assess the gentlemen and the yachts condition; thankfully the yachtsmen had done a good job of clearing the water and just needed the lifeboats assistance to get back the shore.
The gentleman was put aboard the lifeboat and two RNLI crew stayed to attach the tow. After approximately 11 hours towing back to the river Humber the yacht was put alongside and into the safety of Grimsby.
Glenn Peterson Crew at Humber said,
Thankfully on this occasion the gentlemen was able to contact the coastguard and get the help required, we encourage everyone going out to sea to ensure they have a means of distress call available and that equipment is appropriate for the area you are in’
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.
