Wells RNLI rescue crew of capsized dinghy in Burnham Overy harbour
Wells inshore lifeboat was paged at 6:15 pm by Humber Coastguard who had received a 999 call from a member of a group of sailors reporting a capsized dinghy in the seaway to the west of Gun Hill in the approaches to Burnham Overy harbour, the exact location of the crew being unknown at this time.
The inshore lifeboat with a crew of three launched outside the boathouse and proceeded towards Burnham Overy Harbour at 6:25 pm.
At 6:36pm, the inshore lifeboat sighted the dinghy which was now well aground on the east side of the harbour entrance. They also located shortly after the four crew members on the beach and in talking with them and, in discussion with the local Coastguard team, a decision was taken in the first instance to take the dinghy’s crew and other members of the group to Burnham Overy slipway as the weather had worsened and group members were all wet and feeling tired and cold. Once at the slipway they would be met by the awaiting Coastguard team.
The Inshore lifeboat left the foreshore at 6:55 pm with a total of seven persons from the group onboard and they were all ferried back to safety at Burnham Overy slipway arriving at 7:10 pm.
Once the group were ashore, the inshore lifeboat returned to the entrance of Burnham Overy harbour where, in conjunction with the Coastguard they bailed out the dinghy and re-floated the craft. The crew also recovered the group’s paddle board and placed this in the dinghy, which was then towed back by the inshore lifeboat to the safety of the harbour, where the dinghy was securely anchored in the channel for subsequent recovery by its owners on the following high tide.
At 7.45 pm the inshore lifeboat headed back to Wells harbour and was rehoused, sanitised and refuelled at 8:30 pm
RNLI media contacts
For more information please telephone Adrian Underwood, RNLI volunteer Lifeboat Press Office for Wells-next-the-Sea RNLI Lifeboat Station on 07976 717304 or [email protected]
Clare Hopps, RNLI Regional Media Officer for the North and East on (07824) 518641 [email protected]
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