FOUR minutes after midnight on I3th December, 1963, the coxswain of the Caister life-boat, J. R. Plummer, learnt from the Gorleston coastguard that a vessel appeared to be in trouble two miles from the North Denes look- out. Coxswain Plummer decided to go down to the beach to investigate. He had barely decided to do so when at 12.10 a "Mayday" signal was put out by the Lowestoft trawler Loch Lorgan. She gave her position as off the north-west Scroby buoy and asked for life-boat assistance.

This message was passed two min- utes later by the Gorleston coast- guard to the Caister honorary secretary, Mr. M. C. McAvoy. The coastguard also told Mr. McAvoy that the cox- swain had gone down to the beach.

Vessel Apparently Aground As he approached the life-boat house Coxswain Plummer saw a red rocket, and he could also distinguish the lights of a vessel apparently aground on the Middle Caister shoal. He consulted Mr. McAvoy, and it was decided to launch the life-boat.

The maroons were fired at 12.20, and ten minutes later the Caister life-boat Jose Neville, which is one of the 35-foot 6-inch Liverpool type, was launched. The wind was from the east-north-east and was gusting to gale force. There were squalls of hail and sleet. The sea was rough with a heavy swell and visibility was poor. It was an hour before low water and the tide was setting along the coast in a north-north-westerly direc- tion at about one knot.

Firing Red Rockets Coxswain Plummer decided there was not enough water for him to cross the bank near the Caister Elbow buoy, and he therefore decided to pass round the unlit South Caister buoy before heading in the general direction of the north-west Scroby buoy.

At 12.44 he learnt from the coast- guard that the trawler was still off the north-west Scroby buoy and was firing red rockets. Eleven minutes later the life-boat fired a parachute flare. This showed the trawler to be aground in heavy breaking seas with her bows to the south-west. She had a heavy list to starboard and was rolling and pounding.

Guided by what he could see by the light of the parachute flare, Coxswain Plummer made a quick decision. This was that the best approach would be on the port or weather side of the trawler. He knew the starboard side of the wreck would afford some slight lee from both wind and tide, but the extent of the trawler's list, the fact that her lee rail was awash and the manner in which she was rolling and pounding made it almost certain that the life- boat would be severely damaged if he approached the trawler from the star- board side. It was clear that if the trawler's crew were to be rescued speed was essential. Coxswain Plum- mer knew that the shoal was compara- tively steep: he realized that the trawler was drawing considerably more water than the life-boat; but he took the calculated risk of running straight in bows first along the port side of the Loch Lorgan.

He had to depend on his own judgement and the seamanship of his crew to ensure that the bow and stern lines were got aboard the trawler at the first attempt. The crew did, in fact, succeed and about 1.5 the life-boat secured alongside the Loch Lorgan.

There were seven men aboard the trawler, and one at a time they jumped into the life-boat.

After Cockpit Filled Seas were breaking continually over the stern of the life-boat, and the engines had to be kept running half astern with occasional bursts of full astern for her position to be held.

More than once the after cockpit rilled and one particularly heavy sea filled the life-boat right up to the canopy, causing her to surge ahead. Two mem- bers of the crew had to hang on to the stern line without tying it to the bollard so that they could let go or haul in as necessary. Otherwise the line would certainly have parted and the life-boat would have been in serious danger.

The life-boat remained alongside the trawler in the most difficult and dangerous conditions for some ten minutes. The last man to abandon ship cast off the head rope before jumping and Coxswain Plummer awaited his opportunity before order- ing the stern line to be cut and backing away at full speed. The moment the life-boat's bow was clear of the traw- ler's stern she was swept broadside on to the westward by the wind and tide.

She was in grave danger of grounding on the shoal north of the wreck, where the seas were breaking very heavily.

With excellent judgement Coxswain Plummer went full ahead and putting his helm hard to port was just able to clear the starboard quarter of the trawler as the life-boat slowly turned and made to seaward.

Driving Inside Shoal The life-boat made for Gorleston, which she reached at 2.15. The survivors were landed and the life- boat then continued to the Fish- market, as she could not be safely moored alongside the life-boat slipway.

The life-boat crew then went home for a rest and a change of clothing.

At 4.10 in the morning the look- out in the Caister life-boat house told the coxswain that the Loch Lorgan appeared to have refloated on the rising tide and was driving south inside the shoal towards the beach.

The life-boat crew were therefore summoned and drove to Gorleston by car. The Gorleston police had been asked to collect the crew of the Loch Lorgan from the Sailors' Home and take them to the life-boat so that they could have a chance of reboarding their vessel. The life-boat put out at 5.20 and found the Loch Lorgan grounded on the north beach at Yar- mouth. She was lying broadside on in heavy breaking seas and as there could be no question of putting the crew aboard the life-boat returned to her station,which she finally reached aty. 15.

For this service the bronze medal for gallantry was awarded to Coxswain J.

R. Plummer. The thanks of the Insti- tution inscribed on vellum were accor- ded to Assistant Motor Mechanic F.

King, who was deputizing for the Motor Mechanic, and medal service certificates were issued to the other six members of the crew: Second Cox- wain A. Brown, Acting Bowman R.

Read, D. Woodhouse, G. Codman, J. Brown and H. Pascoe..