Holyhead and Moelfre Lifeboats Involved In Joint Rescue

The initial launch request for Holyhead's crew came just before 10pm on Wednesday 1 August.The stricken vessel, with three people on board, was reported as approximately 8 miles north of the Skerries, and was suffering mechanical failure en route from the Isle of Man.

The Holyhead all-weather lifeboat Christopher Pearce headed out in poor conditions, with Force 8 gales, high waves and poor visibility, and located the vessel almost 19 miles from the end of Holyhead Breakwater.

The three metre waves and high winds made undertaking the tow extremely difficult, and unfortunately during attempts to secure the stricken boat ready to be brought back to shore, the tow rope was taken into the lifeboat’s propeller.

A decision was then made to call for assistance from one of Holyhead's flanking stations, Moelfre, who came out on their all-weather lifeboat Kiwi at 1am on Thursday 2 August, and took over the tow, and safely towed the yacht back to land.

Holyhead volunteers returned to station at 3.30am, including those on the inshore lifeboat, who had been called to assist the lifeboat’s return to her berth.

Due to the tricky conditions, the tow by Moelfre lifeboat took six hours, and the lifeboat anchored the stricken vessel in Moelfre Bay, before returning to station at 8am.

The all-weather lifeboat at Holyhead was briefly taken out of service while she was checked out, but was made ready for any further calls later in the day.

Coxswain at Holyhead Lifeboat Station, Tony Price said:

'We'd like to say a huge thank you to our friends at Moelfre Lifeboat Station for coming to assist us; as a lifeboat family it’s amazing how we all pull together as a team when required.'

He added:

'This shows how things can happen to even ourselves in such dangerous weather. Thankfully all crews and casualties made a safe return to land.'

Mechanic on Moelfre Lifeboat, Vince Jones said:

‘This was a particularly difficult rescue, due to the distance and weather conditions involved, and followed a busy day of callouts on Wednesday for us in Moelfre. This rescue demonstrates that team work is essential in the environment we work in.'

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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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