Torbay, Devon. At six o'clock on the evening of the 5th August, 1961, the coastguard passed on to the honorary secretary a report that a 12-feet boat, which had been hired earlier in the day, had not returned. Further enquiries were made, and at 6.27 a message was received that the boat had not come ashore and that the coast had been searched by the owner. There was a light westerly breeze, and the sea wassmooth. At 8.35 the life-boat Princess Alexandra of Kent put out at low water and went to Babbacombe beach, where the boat had been hired. She searched a wide area following the direction in which the boat might have drifted with the wind and tide. Darkness came on, and the search became increasingly difficult.

At 11.30 a message was received ashore that a 14-year-old boy was missing from Torquay and that he had informed his parents he was going out in a motor boat. This information was passed immediately to the life-boat. A further message was also passed that an aircraft would join the search at 1.10, and that at three o'clock in the morning H.M.S. Watchful would be leaving Torquay to take charge of surface operations. The life-boat made con- tact with the aircraft, but this was not entirely successful as the transmitter of the aircraft became faulty.

The life-boat continued to extend her search seawards, and shortly before day- light the missing boat was seen with the boy on board covering his head with his jacket for warmth. The life-boat narrowly missed running the boat down in the darkness. The boy was taken on board the life-boat. He was wet through and exhausted, but he was given a hot drink and wrapped in a blanket, and he quickly recovered. The life- boat immediately signalled that the rescue had been completed and re- turned to Brixham with the boat in tow. Here the boy met his parents, who returned with him to Torquay.

The life-boat finally reached her station at six o'clock in the morning..