Two Lifeboats Rush to Assist Leaking Fishing Boat

First on the scene was Hamble’s independent lifeboat, already out in the Solent on exercise, whose crew found the leak came from the engine’s coolant pipe.

The elder of the two anglers aboard was transferred to the Hamble lifeboat while his place on the fishing boat was taken by a Hamble crew member with a salvage pump. He was then joined by a crewman from the Cowes lifeboat, and water began to be extracted with a bucket.

Eventually Hamble towed the fishing boat against a strong tide to Trinity Landing, Cowes – shadowed all the way by the Cowes lifeboat.

Cowes lifeboat, which had launched around 11.30 on Saturday, was away from station some two hours.

Ends

Caption to photo: Cowes lifeboat stands by as the fishing boat, with lifeboat personnel on board, is towed by Hamble lifeboat to Cowes.

RNLI media contact

• George Chastney, Cowes RNLI Volunteer Press Officer 07530 254052/ [email protected]
• Paul Dunt, RNLI Media Regional Officer (London/East/South East) 0207 6207426/ 07785 296252/ [email protected]
• For enquiries outside normal business hours, contact the RNLI duty press officer on 01202 336789

· RNLI online: For more information on the RNLI please visit http://www.cowes-lifeboat.org.uk or http://www.rnli.org/ Cowes Lifeboat Station can also be found on Facebook and Twitter

· News releases and other media resources, including RSS feeds, downloadable photos and video, are available at the RNLI News Centre.

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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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