Dinghy Capsize Prompts Callout For Tynemouth RNLI Volunteers

The alarm was raised at 12:15pm by members of the public who called UK Coastguard after a sailing dinghy capsized in the lower Tyne harbour leaving its crew in the water, only a hundred metres from Tynemouth RNLI lifeboat station.

As the volunteer crew members launched the inshore lifeboat and sped to the scene, they found a sailing club safety boat alongside the capsized dinghy but it was not possible to right the boat so the safety boat towed it across the harbour back to the sailing club's South Shields slipway, escorted by the inshore lifeboat and her volunteer crew of three.

Once the dinghy and its crew of two were safe, the inshore lifeboat returned to station.

Adrian Don, spokesman for Tynemouth RNLI, said: 'Our volunteers were also called out on Christmas day and we think this is the first time our station has ever been called out on both Christmas Day and Boxing Day.

'Our crew members are always ready to respond, whatever the time or day, and thankfully no-one was hurt in this incident.'

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