Yarmouth RNLI rescues three sailors from two Round the Island Race yachts

The volunteer Yarmouth crew received the first request for help at 7.18am from the yacht Quokka, which had hit a submerged object just east of The Needles resulting in one of her crew members sustaining a broken shoulder and another, minor head injuries. Once on scene, with assistance from the RNLI's Lymington lifeboat, two Yarmouth lifeboat crew were put aboard the yacht to assess the casualties and assist in their safe transferral to the Yarmouth lifeboat, which then returned them to Yarmouth harbour and an awaiting ambulance.

The second call for assistance came at 8.05am from the 48ft yacht Marathon reporting the collapse of a crew member. The lifeboat came alongside the yacht just off Hurst Castle and the casualty, with a suspected burst appendix, was transferred to the lifeboat from where they were airlifted to hospital by the UK Coastguard's Search and Rescue Helicopter.

Lastly, at 10.41am the lifeboat was tasked to assist yacht Ajax which had run aground on Atherfield Ledge, however when the lifeboat reached the scene the casualty vessel was found to have re-floated without assistance and was then able to proceed with the race.

All in all, a very eventful morning for Yarmouth's volunteer crew, following on from a busy period of five launches in ten days.

RNLI media contacts

• Claire Hallett, Yarmouth RNLI Lifeboat Press Officer 07814 900398, claire_iow@yahoo.co.uk
• Richard Heming, Yarmouth RNLI Deputy Lifeboat Press Officer 07810 371233
• Tim Ash, RNLI Public Relations Manager (London/East/South East) 0207 6207426 / 07785 296252 / tim_ash@rnli.org.uk or Paul Dunt, RNLI Press Officer (London/East/South East)0207 6207416 / 07866 668825 / paul_dunt@rnli.org.uk
• For enquiries outside normal business hours, contact the RNLI duty press officer on 01202 336789

Key facts about the RNLI

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 over 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 142,700 lives.

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