Eastbourne Lifeboats Called to 50th Emergency

EASTBOURNE lifeboats had their 50th emergency callout of the year this week.

A wreck diver returning late to his support vessel and three youths adrift in the abandoned hull of a disused fishing boat were the latest in a long line of rescues undertaken by Eastbourne RNLI’s volunteer crews this year.

On Monday this week HM Coastguard requested Eastbourne RNLI’s all-weather lifeboat to stand by when it was informed that a diver had not returned to his support vessel with his companions.
As a precautionary measure the volunteer lifeboat crew was scrambled. The diver finally surfaced 400 metres off station.

He had been caught in an underwater obstruction and was unable to communicate with the support vessel.

He managed to free himself and had the presence of mind to surface slowly.

In the second incident on Monday afternoon, concerned members of the public had alerted Dover Coastguard to three youths adrift in the disused hull of an abandoned fishing boat off the beach near Fort Fun.

A spokesperson for the Eastbourne RNLI said the youths discovered the hull on the beach and decided to go for a ‘cruise’ but trying to paddle against brisk winds with lengths of drain pipe proved to be untenable and they soon found themselves in trouble 500 metres off shore and being blown toward Pevensey Bay.

The volunteer lifeboat crew was quickly on scene and transferred the occupants to the lifeboat and returned them to shore where they were met and interviewed by local coastguard officers.
The hull was then towed back to the inshore lifeboat station and beached. In order to avoid a repeat of the incident, which could have had disastrous consequences, the hull was destroyed.

On Tuesday afternoon, the volunteer lifeboat crew respond to calls for assistance from a disabled fishing trawler and stranded yacht.

A beam trawler with two people on board suffered problems with its propeller six miles south of Sovereign Harbour.

An RNLI spokesperson said the vessel weighed in the region of 40 tonnes which made a tow very slow and the recovery to the locks difficult. In the approaches to harbour the tow was shorted and the Harbour workboat commandeered to be used as a safety break.

Once safe in harbour the underwater obstruction was removed by divers and the trawler returned to work.

The second call of the day for the all-weather lifeboat was received from Dover Coastguard at 10.40 pm to recover a lone yachtsman whose vessel had suffered a complete electrical failure three miles off Sovereign Harbour.

With no navigation lights and being unable to start his engine the yachtsman was reliant on the failing battery of his mobile phone for communications.

The 26 foot vessel was located using the all-weather lifeboat’s radar and towed back to Harbour.

^{STORY SOURCE : RYE AND BATTLE OBSERVER : JULY 7 2010}