Port Erin RNLI lifeboat launched to an upturned dinghy
Port Erin RNLI lifeboat launched to an upturned dinghy
Lifeboats News Release
Port Erin Lifeboat B-813 Muriel and Leslie was tasked by Belfast Coastguard at 14:26 on Monday 24 May to an upturned dinghy between Port Erin and Fleshwick Bay.
Helmsman Matty Preston took Port Erin Lifeboat B-813 Muriel and Leslie with a volunteer crew to conduct an area search from Bradda Head to Fleshwick. Meanwhile, the Fisheries Protection Vessel Barrule was in the area and conducted a search down from Niarbyl. New information then came through that it was an unmanned dinghy. Port Erin lifeboat then spotted the tender cliffside in Fleshwick Bay. A crew member was placed into the water, swam over and boarded the tender where they were pulled back to the lifeboat via a throw line. Once the crew member and the tender were alongside, the crew started to deflate the tender to get it safely aboard the lifeboat.
Once the 2.5-metre tender was deflated and safely stowed at the bow of the lifeboat, Helmsman Matty Preston proceeded to take the crew and lifeboat back to the station at 15:34, where the shore crew were waiting with two Isle of Man Coastguard members who then took the tender.
We would like to thank the public for raising the alarm for the unattended tender and we urge that all tenders have the main boat name on them so we can identify where and who the tenders belong to. Should you get into difficulty or see someone in trouble, dial 999 or 112 and ask for the Coastguard.
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.
