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Lymington Lifeboat crew return one man and his boat to safety

Lifeboats News Release

At 6.32pm on Monday 26th August HM Coastguard requested the assistance of Lymington Lifeboat voluntary crew to perform a welfare check on a small sailing yacht to the west of Beaulieu river, close to the shoreline with engine failure.

Lymington Lifeboat with yacht under tow

RNLI/Joanna Styles

Lymington Lifeboat with yacht under tow

On arrival, the yacht was at anchor with no one on deck. After making contact with the sole occupant below decks, it was established that the man had bought the vessel two days earlier and was attempting a passage from Poole to Southampton with no prior knowledge of sailing.

‘To the gentleman’s credit, he had successfully maintained the boats position with the anchor and was wearing a lifejacket’ commented lifeboatman Luke.

The vessel was however without propulsion and in increasingly shallow water, with the potential to go aground on the falling tide. With this in mind, Lifeboat helm Phil Baker decided to take the vessel under tow, out of danger and in to the safest haven, which was Beaulieu.

‘It is great that sailing is accessible to all but we do recommend getting some tuition before heading out on the water for the first time’ concluded Luke.

Crew: Phil Baker (helm), Greg Pachany, Luke Kelly-Granger, Jo Styles.

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RNLI Contact details:

Jo Styles, Deputy Lifeboat Press Officer, Lymington Lifeboat Station (07725) 640871 Jo_Styles@rnli.org.uk

Hatti Mellor, Regional Communications Manager - SE & London (07724) 801305 hatti_mellor@rnli.org.uk

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

Lymington crew delivering yacht safely to shore

RNLI/Joanna Styles

Lymington crew delivering yacht safely to shore

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 146,000 lives.

Learn more about the RNLI

For more information please visit the RNLI website or Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. News releases, videos and photos are available on the News Centre.

Contacting the RNLI - public enquiries

Members of the public may contact the RNLI on 0300 300 9990 (UK) or 1800 991802 (Ireland) or by email.

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