Littlehampton RNLI assist Selsey RNLI in rescue operation.
The helmsman of Selsey RNLI’s lifeboat requested the assistance of Littlehampton RNLI in escorting the casualty back into Littlehampton Harbour.
The yacht with three people on-board had been sailing towards Brighton when a problem with the navigation equipment occurred and the vessel was sailing very close to Bognor Rocks. The skipper had made a VHF radio request for assistance and the Selsey lifeboat and volunteer crew had launched in response. The casualty had been towed back towards Littlehampton Harbour, the tide was receding and there was some concern about the level of the water at the entrance to the harbour. Following direct VHF radio communication with Selsey RNLI and the UK Coastguard, Littlehampton’s Atlantic 85 lifeboat Renée Sherman and volunteer crew launched at 4:10pm on Saturday 10 November. At the scene just outside the harbour entrance the lifeboat crew took over the recovery of the casualty from the Selsey crew and escorted it back into Littlehampton Harbour, where it was safely moored at Town Quay. The lifeboat returned to the station at 4:52pm, where it was made ready for service.
A RNLI spokesman said “The operation was a very good example of how the co-operation and communication between the two RNLI stations really worked in rescuing the casualty and its three occupants”
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]
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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