Porthdinllaen RNLI assist yacht aground

After launching down the slipway, the RNLI Volunteer crew located the yacht aground on rocks near Porth Ty Mawr, approximately a mile to the West of Porthdinllaen point. On board was a lone sailor who was on passage from Felinheli on the Menai Straits to Porthdinllaen, and had suffered electrical failure earlier in the morning. With no wind to power his sails, the Sailor had gone down to the engine room of his yacht to try and rectify the fault so that he could use his engine to steam into Porthdinllaen Harbour.
The strong tidal current had caught the Yachtsman by surprise, and was unable to stop his vessel going aground. Upon arrival, The Lifeboat deployed it`s inflatable rescue tender so that two of its crew members could assist in securing the tow line and ensure that the vessel was safely eased off the rocks. This was carried out successfully with the lifeboat upon arrival at Porthdinllaen Harbour, placed the yacht on a safe lmooring. The lifeboat returned to her station and was ready for service by 8:10AM.
Keneth Fitzpatrick, Launch Operations Manager at Porthdinllaen commented ' The yachtsman was shocked that his vessel had been carried ashore by the tidal stream in such a short time, the first he knew of it was when he heard his yacht`s keel hitting the rocky shoreline'

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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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