Fraserburgh RNLI Lifeboat out to small boat which had lost power at Rosehearty

Full time Coxswain/Mechanic Vic Sutherland and the volunteer crew of Fraserburgh all-weather lifeboat Willie and May Gall was tasked by the UK Coastguard after receiving a phone call that the boat had lost power and was drifting towards rocks.

Coxswain Sutherland and the volunteer crew of mechanic Jason Flett Amy Allan, Stephen Brown, Chay Cumming, Shane Richardson, and Martyn Runcie left Fraserburgh Harbour and proceeded at best speed to the scene of the casualty.

Minutes earlier when paged Vic had just finished a two hour session at the gym and Stephen Brown had actually just cycled out to Rosehearty and back and was just arriving on the outskirts of Fraserburgh when the pager alarms had gone off. Chay was just sitting down to his supper, Amy was working in an office not far from the Lifeboat Station and was the first to arrive and Jason was just about to go out into the bay in his own small boat.

Arriving within sight of the casualty Coxswain Sutherland saw that it was too dangerous to risk taking the lifeboat in closer to reach the powerless vessel and deployed the much smaller XP boat which is kept aboard for occasions like this.

Volunteers Shane Richardson and Stephen Brown safely negotiated the XP boat avoiding many submerged hazards and soon reached the small 18ft boat.

They took the boat with the sole occupant remaining aboard back to the lifeboat. Then the lifeboat took him to Rosehearty harbour where they were met by the local coastguard team.

Fraserburgh Lifeboat returned to station, was washed down and refuelled ready for next service at 9.06pm

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 142,700 lives.

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