Burnham RNLI Home Page > Burnham RNLI Launch Archive

May 30, 2005
Burnham-On-Sea lifeboats help disabled speedboat to shore

Visitors to Burnham-On-Sea's lifeboat station Open Day saw at first hand how lifeboats are launched - after HM Coastguard Officers called out crewmembers at 13:17 on Monday May 30.

Both boats were launched to help in the recovery of a disabled speedboat, called Die Hard, which was drifting approximately half a mile up the River Parrett after encountering engine problems.

The lifeboat crews investigated and discovered the vessel, a sixteen foot speedboat with six persons on board, and a disabled engine, drifting in force three winds.

The speedboat crew managed to restart the engine on minimal power and were escorted safely back to the beach by the Staines Whitfield lifeboat, where RNLI crewmembers helped them to the beach.

A member of the speedboat crew from North Somerset said: “I used my mobile phone to call for help when the engine refused to restart.”

“When we eventually managed to start the engine, I called the Coastguard back, but the RNLI were already on their way.”

He added: “It was good to know they were there ready to help us if we were in trouble!”

A member of the local Auxillary Coastguard took the crew’s details and advised them of the advantages of purchasing a proper marine radio, instead of just relying on the use of a mobile phone.

Before the Staines Whitfield was landed, Swansea Coastguard Control asked the lifeboat crew to investigate a report of another speedboat drifting with apparently nobody on board.

The crew investigated and found a small boat anchored with the occupants engaged in an afternoon’s fishing, whereupon, they returned to shore and the confines of the lifeboat station compound.

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Burnham-On-Sea RNLI Home Page