St Davids RNLI launch to broken down boat drifting in tide

St Davids RNLI Lifeboat volunteers were paged at 11.24am to a broken down 16ft RIB North of Skomer Island with three people onboard. The all-weather lifeboat Norah Wortley launched at 11.39am, arriving on scene at 12.10pm.

The casualty vessel had three wardens from Skomer Island onboard who had been collecting essential supplies from the mainland at Martins Haven. On their return both the main and auxiliary outboard broke down. They were all wearing lifejackets and had a means to call for help onboard.

On arrival the crew secured the casualty vessel, towed their vessel to North Haven on Skomer and returned them to their mooring.

The volunteer crew returned to the boat house and were back on service at 1:.0pm.

In Wales the current guidelines are that only essential journeys should be taken and no pleasure boating activities are allowed.
'If you have to travel by water please carry a means of calling for help, always wear an appropriate lifejacket as well as thoroughly checking and understand the weather and tide conditions and their likely impact on your planned activity,' said a spokesperson for the station.
'In any coastal emergency, please contact the Coastguard by calling 999, 112 or VHF 16.'

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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