Four saved from 'almost certain death' off Caister coast
It happened yesterday
The RNLI says four people escaped "almost certain death", after a yacht ran aground off Caister yesterday.
The Caister Inshore Lifeboat and the Medina Class All Weather vessel launched and, along with RNLI Gorleston ILB and HM Coastguard Helicopter 363 from Lydd, were called five miles off shore, with casualties feared in the water.
Reports stated the crew had abandoned the yacht on a sandbank and boarded their life raft.
But arriving on scene the crew of the Caister Lifeboats found a life raft empty, triggering an emergency search of the sea by the inshore crew, while the all-weather vessel went to the grounded yacht.
Two crew were seen on board the stricken vessel, and after around an hour of searching, in 2m swell, all four casualties were accounted for.
Owing to the shallowness of the water, the RNLI Gorleston crew picked up the casualties and transferred them to the Caister All Weather vessel to transfer them to shore for medical assessment.
Joint coxswain of Caister Lifeboat Richard Thurlow said: “We have all witnessed one of the most dramatic rescues we have seen in many years.
“Unlike the Viking (a vessel that sank with three people found alive in the water 13 miles offshore) which we arrived on scene as it happened, we were seeing this situation deteriorate in front of our eyes.
“The four people on board were in extreme danger and we were fearing the worst.
“We arrived on scene with an empty life raft and a yacht aground and semi-submerged in heavy breaking swell.
“Attempts to make contact with the yacht to establish how many casualties were on board, if any, was extremely difficult.
“At stages of the rescue it looked like it was going to be a search rather than recovering people from the vessel.
“Thankfully the crew made the sensible choice to stay with the vessel, as this undoubtedly saved their lives.”
Mr Thurlow praised HM Humber Coastguard in coordinating the emergency response and said his crew and the Gorleston lifeboat team worked well throughout the rescue.
He added: “Special praise to the crew on the Gorleston ILB who tackled the conditions valiantly and showed exceptional seamanship getting alongside the vessel.
“The condition of the vessel deteriorated to the point where all four crew had abandoned ship and were recovered by the Gorleston ILB crew and transferred to the Caister All-Weather Lifeboat to be taken to shore for medical assessment.”