THE volunteer crew from Porthcawl RNLI raced to the rescue last Friday, 28th August, when a yacht sank after running aground on a sandbank.
HM Coastguard raised the alarm at 3.02pm following a 999 call from a lone sailor on the yacht, which was trapped on Scarweather Sands. The yacht had run aground and its engine had been swamped. The Mumbles RNLI all-weather lifeboat was also requested.
The inshore Atlantic 85 class lifeboat Rose of the Shires launched into strong force 5-6 south westerly winds and moderate sea conditions. As they got closer to Scarweather sand bank, the crew were unable to immediately spot the casualty and, due to the conditions, were struggling to locate them using radar. With the yacht’s VHF radio out of action, the sailor was requested to fire a red flare, after which the lifeboat crew spotted the vessel.
At the scene, the crew observed that the yacht had taken on a significant amount of water. The safest course of action was to put a crew member onboard and it was immediately apparent that the crew needed to get the sailor off as quickly as possible, as it would be impossible to stem the flow of water.
The casualty was safely transferred on to the lifeboat before the vessel sank. Due to the challenging sea conditions at the time, the casualty was then transferred to the Mumbles all-weather lifeboat and taken safely ashore at Swansea.
Speaking later, Andrew Walmsley, Porthcawl RNLI Lifeboat operations manager said: “The crew did a great job in difficult conditions. Time was of the essence and to locate the sailor quickly, with fairly limited information, and evacuate them from the sinking yacht resulted in a life saved and we want to wish the casualty well.
“We would like to commend the casualty for being prepared and having a means to call for help. Should you get into difficulty or see someone else in trouble, call 999 or 112 and ask for the Coastguard.”
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