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Fishguard lifeboat tows stranded yacht with four aboard to safety

The yacht lost engine power and had no wind to sail, leaving it at risk among larger vessels 20 miles offshore on Sunday.

Louise Pryce ·

Archive view over Fishguard harbour, April 2022. Photo: Eirian Evans, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Geograph and Wikimedia Commons. Not the rescue.

Fishguard harbour in April 2022, not the rescue. Photo: Eirian Evans, CC BY-SA 2.0.

Original photographCC BY-SA 2.0

A yacht carrying four people was towed to safety by Fishguard RNLI after engine failure and a lack of wind left it stranded in a busy shipping area on Sunday 20 September.

The RNLI published its account on Wednesday. HM Coastguard called out the volunteer crew at 3.31pm to the 38ft vessel, about 20 miles offshore, near the traffic separation scheme between Wales and Ireland.

Tow to a safe haven

No other suitable vessel was available to help. After assessing the risk to those aboard and other shipping, the crew of Blue Peter VII decided to tow the yacht to Fishguard, the nearest safe haven.

The yacht was left safely at anchor in the bay. The lifeboat returned to its station five hours after first reaching the vessel. This is an account of Sunday’s rescue, not an ongoing emergency.

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