Withernsea RNLI volunteers assist fishing vessel

At 12:30 on Saturday 23 September, the UK Coastguard request the launch of Withernsea's inshore lifeboat Henley Eight.

As the lifeboat was proceeding to the scene, the fishing vessel had restarted their engines after initially breaking down one mile east of Withernsea.

The lifeboat decided to escort the vessel back to Withernsea in case of further incident, and shortly before reaching Withernsea the lifeboat was required to attach a tow line following a second engine failure and tow the fishing vessel back to Withernsea beach.

Volunteer Crewman Darren Hickey said: 'The crew of the fishing vessel did the right thing by calling for help, and even though they managed to get their engine working again we wanted to escort them to safety as there was a strong tide and they could have soon found themselves in danger again.

'Once their engine failed for a second time we made the decision to recover them safely to Withernsea beach.'

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 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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