Tag: UK MCA

Crew of Sinking Fishing Vessel Rescued Off Portland At 3:15pm, Portland Coastguard received a routine telephone call from a member of the public advising the Coastguard that he had received a phone call from the skipper of the 11 metre Fishing Vessel Purbeck Isle, reporting they were taking water. The informant was unsure how many people were on board, the position was vague, but somewhere off Chesil Beach, west of Portland.Portland Coastguard immediately tasked the Weymouth RNLI all weather lifeboat and the Coastguard Rescue Helicopter R-106.Three further telephone calls were received at Portland Coastguard: from a parent of one of the crew; the owner of the vessel; and an off-duty lifeboatman. No one on board thought to report their predicament to the Coastguard using either their mobile phones, the VHF radio, or any other modern technological methods available to commercial mariners.Three other fishing vessels, including the Gordeano Star and the Swordfish all responded to the Coastguard broadcast and were tasked.The Coastguard Rescue Helicopter arrived on scene at 3:30pm and lowered their winch-man onto the deck of the stricken fishing vessel to find there were three people on board.The fishing vessel was indeed taking on water so the Rescue Helicopter lowered ...