The low tides on Sunday afternoon kept Ryde Inshore Rescue busy patrolling the large sand bank which generally causes a lot of trouble to those unfamiliar with it.
Most vessels did well to avoid the sands but just as Ryde Rescue 2 were coming in to recover, wash down and go home at the end of the watch a 6m RIB passed them at high speed and ploughed in to the sandbank. Ryde Rescue 2 were quickly on scene and after ascertaining that there was no hull damage; just a chunk missing out of their propeller, towed them off the bank before the sands were completely exposed and they would be stuck there.
The casualty vessel had 4 persons on board and despite hitting the bank at speed no one sustained any injuries. Unfortunately the vessel didn’t fare so well and suffered engine failure, requiring a tow back to Hamble Marina. With the strong tides Ryde Rescue 1 launched and took over the tow towards the Southampton waters where they handed the casualty over to Hamble Rescue, another independent lifeboat station.
This article has been read 229 times!
