The volunteer crew of Cowes RNLI Lifeboat has had a thoroughly busy 24 hours – being tasked to 3 separate incidents in just one day.
The first job of the day came in the late hours of yesterday evening (Thursday) when the lifeboat crew was tasked alongside Coastguard Rescue Officers to reports of a sighting of a red distress flare in the Osborne Bay and River Medina areas, as previously reported.
This morning (Friday), Cowes lifeboat launched for a planned exercise that was due to take place with the Coastguard Rescue Helicopter. Shortly after launching, HM Coastguard tasked the crew to investigate a possible upturned vessel in the Western Solent – no vessel was found but the crew did locate and recover a large amount of solid vegetation.
Later in the day, at 12:38, the crew was once again tasked by HM Coastguard – this time to a dismasted yacht in the Beaulieu River.
The crew assisted in buoying and dropping the mast, with a position passed to HMCoastguard, before escorting the vessel for a short while to make sure they were safe heading back to Hamble under their own power.
If you or someone else is in difficulty on the coast or at sea, or if you spot what you think may be unexploded ordnance, then dial 999 and ask for the Coastguard. Further safety information can be found at https://coastguardsafety.campaign.gov.uk/.
Get help faster by giving emergency services your exact location by using ///what3words.
what3words have divided the world into 3m squares and given each square a unique combination of three words, which means when you are in a remote area of the Isle of Wight you can get assistance much quicker without the need for local knowledge.
