Barrow Lifeboat Called to Yacht in Distress
The RNLI’s volunteer crew from Barrow Lifeboat Station launched their all-weather lifeboat late yesterday evening to go to the aid of a yacht in the East Irish Sea.
The call for assistance came through from the regional HM Coastguard base in Holyhead at 9-36pm on Thursday evening (20 April 2023). The lifeboat was tasked with attending to a 21-foot (6.4 metre) yacht with one person on board and which was taking on water.
The crew was paged and the all-weather lifeboat, ‘Grace Dixon’, was launched at 10-03pm under the command of Coxswain, Shaun Charnley, assisted by a crew of six. The position of the casualty vessel was given as approximately seven miles west of Walney Lighthouse. The ‘Grace Dixon’ proceeded to the scene, arriving at 10-23pm. One of the lifeboat crew was transferred on to the casualty vessel and after assessing the situation and establishing that the casualty wasn’t sinking, it was decided to escort the casualty back to Walney Channel. However, the vessel experienced further issues and with no suitable mooring available in Walney Channel, the casualty was taken to the Port of Barrow where it was berthed at a pontoon in the dock system.
The Barrow lifeboat was stood down just before 1-00am and it was then able to return to its mooring near to the Roa Island Boathouse. With the lifeboat slipway undergoing planned maintenance and not available, the crew were transferred back to the Boathouse by means of the boarding boat.
The weather at the time of the incident was fine and the wind was easterly, Force 4 and the sea state was moderate. The high tide was at 11-48pm with a height of 9.4 metres.
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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 142,700 lives.
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