Littlehampton RNLI rescues broken down boat just before thunderstorm

The crew, who look after the stretch of the West Sussex coastline between Bognor Regis and Worthing, were tasked by HM Coastguard to assist a 28-foot leisure vessel that had broken down three miles south west of Littlehampton Harbour.

Littlehampton RNLI’s Renee Sherman lifeboat was launched at 8.11pm and arrived at the scene at 8.32pm. A member of Littlehampton RNLI’s crew boarded the vessel to assess the situation, and it was decided that the best possible course of action was to tow the boat to the safety of Littlehampton Harbour.

A thunderstorm was approaching from the south, so with lightning flashing all around them and rumbles of thunder becoming increasingly louder, Littlehampton RNLI’s volunteer crew rigged a tow and set course for Littlehampton Harbour. The broken down vessel was towed to the safety of Littlehampton Yacht Club and Renee Sherman arrived back at the lifeboat station at 9.50pm – just minutes before the thunderstorm and torrential rain arrived.

Nick White, Littlehampton RNLI’s Lifeboat Operations Manager, and Deputy Launching Authority for this tasking, said: ‘Our volunteer crew are on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week, ready to help those in trouble in local waters – whatever the weather. Being stuck on a broken down boat in a thunderstorm would not have been a pleasant experience, so we are pleased that we were able to tow the vessel to the safety of Littlehampton Harbour, just in time.’

ENDS

Notes to editors

Littlehampton RNLI’s volunteer crew look after the stretch of the West Sussex coast between Bognor Regis and Worthing, and is independent from the Coastguard. To find out more about Littlehampton RNLI, see https://rnli.org/news-and-media/2022/april/27/10-facts-about-littlehampton-rnli-lifeboat-station

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