80 ton fishing boat towed to safety by Hartlepool RNLI
Hartlepool RNLI volunteers were paged at 4.05pm on Monday 16 August to reports of a 16 metre 80 ton fishing boat with five people on board that had suffered mechanical failure approximately six miles off Hartlepool.
The charity's all-weather lifeboat Betty Huntbatch launched at 4.25pm and was alongside the casualty vessel at 4.50pm.
Once the scene had been assessed and owing to sea conditions, it was decided that undertaking a tow was necessary and the safest way to assist the casualties.
A tow was then attached and the vessel was towed back to Hartlepool Fish Quay arriving there at 6.10pm where the local Hartlepool Coastguard Rescue team were waiting to assist.The all-weather lifeboat returned to the Ferry Road lifeboat station at 6.15pm and was refuelled and made ready for service by 6.30pm.
RNLI Media contacts
For more information please contact Tom Collins, RNLI Volunteer Lifeboat Press Officer on: 07896 793557.
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.
Learn more about the RNLI
For more information please visit the RNLI website or Facebook, X, TikTok and YouTube. News releases, videos and photos are available on the News Centre.
Contacting the RNLI - public enquiries
Members of the public may contact the RNLI on 0300 300 9990 (UK) or 1800 991802 (Ireland) or by email.