In the early hours of the morning, Swanage Lifeboat Station got a call to help a yacht that had drifted ashore and run aground on Swanage Beach.
The yacht crew, who’d been sleeping on the vessel overnight, were woken as the hull hit the beach.
Blown by a strong easterly wind, the yacht had also become entangled in the buoy line that marks out the designated swimming area in front of the RNLI lifeguard tower.
The inshore lifeboat launching from Swanage Lifeboat Station
Leapt out of bed
At 6.32 am on Sunday 30th May 2021, the Swanage Lifeboat crew were paged to assist the stranded vessel and leapt out of bed.
The D-Class inshore lifeboat was launched a mere 12 minutes later and was soon alongside the yacht.
Swanage Lifeboat Station said:
“It turned out that the yacht had broken free from a mooring and drifted ashore with the easterly wind waking the people on board as they went aground. The yacht was also partly tangled in the buoy line that marks the designated bathing area so that had to be cleared first.
“Once that was done a towline was passed across and the yacht gently towed out into deeper water. The skipper then went below to check for damage and any signs of water ingress. The skipper reported back that all was well so the towline was released and the yacht set sail for Cowes.”
