Littlehampton lifeboat responds to call reporting a loud bang and smoke offshore
The station's volunteer crew were paged by the UK Coastguard at 10.53am on Thursday 9 November following a call from a member of the public at South Strand, East Preston, who reported hearing a loud bang and seeing smoke that appeared to have come from a leisure vessel, some distance offshore.
The RNLI station’s Atlantic 85 inshore lifeboat Renée Sherman was launched and headed out in cloudy conditions to the reported location two and a half miles south east of the harbour entrance.
On arrival at the scene, the crew commenced the search. Following further information from the UK Coastguard the lifeboat undertook a wider search of the area, extending to a quarter of a mile south of Worthing Pier and towards the weather station two and a half miles out at sea.
At 12.39pm the UK Coastguard contacted the lifeboat and it was decided that as no casualty vessel had been located the search should be terminated. The lifeboat was stood down and returned to the lifeboat station where it was refuelled and made ready for service.
RNLI media contacts
- Ray Pye, Littlehampton RNLI Volunteer Lifeboat Press Officer / 07854 074688, email [email protected]
- Paul Dunt, Regional Media Officer (South East) on 0207 6207426, 07785 296252 email [email protected]
- For enquiries outside normal business hours, contact the RNLI duty press officer on 01202 336789
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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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