Peterhead RNLI respond to Mayday call

At 1:46pm on Thursday 8 August, HM Coastguard tasked Peterhead RNLI all-weather lifeboat The Misses Robertson of Kintail following a 999 call from a concerned member of the public. The call reported that a sailing vessel had capsized in Peterhead bay with 2 people onboard thrown into the water.

HM Coastguard issued a Mayday call and the volunteer lifeboat crew were paged for an immediate launch. The Peterhead RNLI all-weather lifeboat The Missed Robertson of Kintail launched on service at 1:55pm.

A search was conducted of the bay area, but the casualty vessel was not located. The lifeboat then headed to Peterhead marina and launched its daughter craft the Y boat to further the search. The crew attended the beach and along with HM Coastguard coastal rescue team located the two casualties who had been in the water and had been recovered by the local sailing club safety boat.

The crew from the Y boat undertook a head injury assessment on one of the casualties who had hit their head during the capsize. Both were left in the care of the sailing club and the lifeboat was shortly stood down, returning to the berth and made ready for next service.

Peterhead RNLI Coxswain Kyle Murray said: 'This was my first shout as Peterhead's full time Coxswain/Mechanic and I would like to thank all the crew for their prompt response, especially as it's in the school holidays.

'The volunteers at the station whether crew, fundraisers or operations team all give up their time to keep the lifeboat on service and we are only able to do this due to donations and legacies left to the RNLI by generous members of the public whose support allows us to maintain this lifesaving service.

'Thankfully on this occasion no one was seriously injured and it was a relatively short shout. It's been a great few weeks for me starting at Peterhead and I'm looking forward to many more shouts with this excellent team!'

Ends

Notes to Editors

· Peterhead lifeboat station has been operating since 1865. To learn more about the lifeboat station go to: https://rnli.org/find-my-nearest/lifeboat-stations/peterhead-lifeboat-station

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