Donaghadee Lifeboat was called to a dramatic rescue in the middle of the Irish Sea, as one volunteer recalled aiding a yacht which had been dismasted in unsettled and stormy conditions.
In the early hours of Saturday, the local branch of the RNLI was called out to aid a 37-foot yacht which was left disabled 25 miles southeast of the local town.
RNLI volunteers contended with four metre tall waves and strong winds, all while trying to rescue three people aboard the lurching boat.
The mast had been snapped in the storms, with rigging left hanging off the side of the vessel.
Fortunately, the yacht had two emergency signals. That being an Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB) and a personal locator beacon (PLB).
The EPIRB signal was sent out to the Belfast Coastguard, which then prompted Donaghadee Lifeboat to lunch. At the unsettled scene, they met with Peel ALB from the Isle of Man, responding to the same call.
Helicopters were also present to aid with the rescue. An Irish Coastguard Helicopter from Dublin, and another from the UK Coastguard in Wales attended.
Arriving at the scene, the Donaghadee crew set about making the vessel safe for towing with their Peel colleagues.
After establishing that the second distress signal came from the disabled yacht, and that no one was injured or missing, the two helicopters were then stood down.
Boarding the yacht with the shaken crew, along with a Peel crew member, was Donaghadee man and RNLI volunteer of seven years, Christopher Stewart.
The volunteer recalled the rescue mission, having to cut away the tangled rigging to make the stricken vessel safe for towing back to the Isle of Man.
“Our pagers went off at 1.57am, we assembled at the station and left the harbour,” said Christopher. “The conditions were pretty rough, with force five winds and a moderate to rough sea state. There were three to four metre waves.
“Initially, the coast guard got the EPIRB signal, there was a second distress signal from a PLB. I commend them on having both those signals, and having them activated.
“That is what prompted everybody to their location.
“When we arrived, we saw that the vessel had dismasted, the mast snapped in half. A lot of the rigs and sails were in the water.
“It was requested that we put myself on the casualty vessel, along with a member from Peel.
“First of all, I had to walk around to check on the crew to see if they were safe. They were happy enough to see us arrive, apart from being a bit in distress because of the mast.
“It was a bit of a relief that we weren’t looking for anybody in the water. Then it was just a question of making the boat safe to tow.
“At one-point helicopters had been asked to come out, but when they were able to confirm that the two distress signals were coming from the same casualty vessel, and that everybody was counted for, they stood down.
“We tried to see if we could salvage any of the rig or sails, but it was a bit of a mess with stays, lines and ropes everywhere.
“We had to cut the stays away, clearing ropes and the boat to make it safe for a tow.
“It probably took us an hour and a half in very testing and difficult conditions.
“The boat was lurching forwards, backwards and sideways, but we managed to get the job done. Peel towed it back into their harbour. It was a four and a half hour tow they had to do,” recalled the Donaghadee volunteer.
“We would train with Bangor or Portaferry the odd time, so we wouldn’t see Peel too much, it was nice to work with them,” added Christopher.
Coxswain of Donaghadee Lifeboat, Philip McNamara, commented on the challenging rescue.
“Our crew member Chris Stewart was on board the yacht along with a Peel lifeboat crew member.
“I commend their hard work in challenging conditions, dealing with the collapsed mast and rigging to make the yacht seaworthy.
“We were happy to provide whatever support was needed for Peel to complete the rescue; our intensive and regular training prepares the crew members for incidents such as this.”
