Lerwick lifeboat rescues five from sinking trawler
Lerwick RNLI lifeboat, Michael and Jane Vernon, with eight volunteer crew on board was launched on Friday 3 March at 7.10am after the Lerwick-registered trawler Ocean Way reported to the coastguard that she was taking in water 10 miles east of Out Skerries.
The lifeboat arrived on the scene at 8.05am and transferred two crew, one of whom actually works on the vessel, to the Ocean Way with the lifeboat’s salvage pump.
A Norwegian fish carrier, the Gerda Saele which was also at the scene had already put a pump on board, and the Coastguard helicopter was in the process of winching a further pump to the lifeboat when it became apparent that the Ocean Way was beyond saving and her skipper decided to abandon ship.
Due to the sea conditions. it was too dangerous to take the lifeboat alongside, so the five crew and two lifeboatmen took to the water and were picked up. The two RNLI crew helped the men swim clear as the Ocean Way foundered.
She sank at 8.20am.
Once the survivors were on board, the lifeboat returned to Lerwick and was back alongside at 9.50am.
Lifeboat coxswain Alan Tarby said, “The rescue was made much easier because the Ocean Way’s crew were all wearing the correct safety equipment and had undergone safety training. It was a good outcome even although the vessel was lost, all the crew were unharmed.
“The lifeboat crew performed very well, especially the two men who were in the water with the fishermen.”
Wind was North Easterly Force 3-4 and the sea state was moderate with a 1 metre swell.
RNLI Media Contact: Peter Kerr, volunteer lifeboat press officer at Lerwick, 07835 336596 [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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