Eastbourne lifeboat spends nine hours assisting French yacht in shipping lanes

The volunteer crew of Eastbourne’s all-weather lifeboat (ALB) were requested help escort a vessel across the shipping lanes yesterday morning (October 27).
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The lifeboat was launched at 4am and was out for a total of nine hours assisting the French vessel.

It was reported the yacht was travelling erratically in the shipping lanes without navigation lights and in worsening sea conditions.

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The initial information received was the vessel was last seen 10 miles south east of Eastbourne, travelling on the edge of one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world – without lights, and against the flow of commercial marine traffic – causing a severe hazard to navigation.

The French yacht assisted by the Eastbourne lifeboat crew SUS-201028-091825001The French yacht assisted by the Eastbourne lifeboat crew SUS-201028-091825001
The French yacht assisted by the Eastbourne lifeboat crew SUS-201028-091825001

Whilst the ALB was approaching the given position, an update from a passing tug was received which placed the target vessel much further out to sea and deep in the south west lane.

Using radar and further information received from the coastguard, the vessel was finally located 15 miles offshore.

The lifeboat crew found a 10 metre yacht with a broken boom, shredded headsail and trailing a 100 metre length of rope, barely making way in the treacherous sea conditions.

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However, despite the crews most diplomatic approaches, the lone French sailor refused all offers of assistance and would not allow a tow to be attached, the report from the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) said.

During the course of negotiations, the lifeboat coxswain Mark Sawyer managed to ascertain the sailor had left Le Havre intending to go to Cherbourg – which put him at least 100 miles off course.

His only request was that the lifeboat crew removed as much of the trailing rope as possible to improve the yacht’s forward motion.

The report said that for ethical reasons, the lifeboat could not abandon the casualty in such a precarious position with the yacht and occupant in danger and risking other passing traffic, so in negotiation with the coastguard and their French counterparts it was agreed the lifeboat would stand by until daybreak.

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Meanwhile, coastguards were issuing regular warnings to other shipping in the area.

Having escorted the yacht across the south west lane, the separation zone, and the north east lane, the crew were finally stood down on the edge of French territorial waters to begin the long, and by now very rough and windy return to Eastbourne.

They arrived back nine hours after the original notice came in.