Exhausted yachtsmen BRONZE MEDAL THE YACHT Sea Victor, built in Germany during the 1930s, had sailed from Exmouth on the morning of Friday May 2, 1986, on passage to Guernsey. By the evening of the following day after a rough crossing the crew of four were very tired and unsure of their position in heavy seas and head winds some 15 miles north west of Guernsey. The yacht's engine was also proving unreliable.

St Peter Port lifeboat station had answered her call for help and at 0037 on May 4, Sir Max Aitken, the relief 52ft Arun class lifeboat on temporary station duty had located the yacht and, under the command of Acting Coxswain Peter Bisson, began to escort her towards St Peter Port.

Just over half an hour later a call came through that another yacht, Prairie Schooner, was close on a lee shore on the south coast of Guernsey with her mainsail blown out and with no fuel on board. Deeming her to be in more immediate danger. CoxswainBisson was forced to leave Sea Victor and head at full speed for the second yacht.

By now Alderney lifeboat had been alerted and at 0130 the island's 33ft Brede class lifeboat Foresters Future, under the command of Coxswain Stephen Shaw, slipped her mooring and headed out to sea to assist Sea Victor.

The yacht's position was 9'/2 miles to the north west of Platte Fougere lighthouse, she was reported now to be without engine power, taking water and her crew were ill with seasickness.

Low water at Braye Harbour had passed and the flood tide was setting to the south west at about half a knot. The southerly wind, force 6 to 7, was creating a rough sea with waves of 12 feet once the lifeboat reached the end of the harbour breakwater. Only occasional gaps showed in the cloud cover between rain squalls; visibility was, at best, four miles.

The lifeboat headed down the Swinge Channel on a course of 260°M, her coxswain having to rely on radar and Decca Navigator in the heavy spray.

Clear of the narrows he altered course on to a west-south-westerly bearing and although the lifeboat passed only two miles to the south of Casquets lighthouse, the crew only twice saw the light.

The wind was now up to gale force. The lifeboat, passing over the northern part of the Casquets South West Bank, began to encounter very heavy seas and Coxswain Shaw had to make constant adjustments to the engine speed. One very heavy sea, thought to be 25ft, threw the lifeboat 40 degrees off course and heeled her over some 60 degrees.

The coxswain experienced rudder stall before he was able to throttle back. The lifeboat came upright readily and once the crew had been checked for injuries passage was resumed.

Just as the lifeboat cleared the bank she began to be able to hear Sea Victor on channel 16. A VHP direction finding bearing confirmed that the lifeboat was on course and at 0229 navigation lights could be seen ahead. At the request of the coxswain the vacht fired a ereenflare to confirm that she was the one in trouble. Six minutes later, as she approached the yacht, the lifeboat fired a white para-flare. Its light showed the yacht to be lying hull to, in heavy breaking seas. She was low in the water and shipping water while her crew huddled aft in the cockpit. The wind was due south, blowing at gale force 8 across the tide which was flowing east north east at about 1 knot. A swell of about ten feet hid the yacht's hull from sight in each trough.

Coxswain Shaw decided to put his assistant mechanic Mike O'Gorman aboard the yacht; he was to investigate her low freeboard and make use of his very good knowledge of first aid. The arrival of the lifeboat had coincided with that of a French search and rescue helicopter from Granville and as the coxswain prepared his approach by tendering the lifeboat's starboard side, the helicopter took up a position nearby to illuminate the scene.

Approaching the lee side of the yacht Coxswain Shaw aimed to place his starboard bow alongside while keeping clear of the yacht's 10ft dinghy which was windmilling at her stern on a short painter. The first attempt was abandoned when the coxswain had to applystrong stern power to avoid driving over the yacht as she made a violent corkscrew. The second attempt was successful and Mike O'Gorman jumped nimbly aboard.

None of the yacht's four occupants (one a woman) was injured but they were all very tired and seasick. After two days at sea in heavy weather their response level was low and it was doubtful that they would have been able to help themselves if the need arose. Water was already over the floorboards and more was coming into the cockpit all the time.

Mike O'Gorman instructed the occupants that all but the skipper must transfer to the lifeboat and rehearsed them in crouching on the cockpit seats, ready to stand when told to do so, while he supported them from behind.

The lifeboat made an approach and the lightest man was grabbed and hauled aboard by two crewmen positioned on the lifeboat's foredeck.

The next run in had to be abandoned as the timing was incorrect but on the following attempt the woman was safely transferred. The next pass was called off when it was realised that the yacht's only two lifejackets were now aboard the lifeboat and so on the next approach (the seventh) the lifejackets were passed back aboard the yacht. The third yachtsman was found in the cabin, under a blanket. He was a large man and was transferred only with difficulty when the lifeboat made her next run in.

At this stage the assistant mechanic realised that Sea Victor was not actually making water, but simply taking it in from over the side. It transpired that her bilge suctions and cockpit drains had been blocked (intentionally, it was later discovered, by the skipper who thought it would prevent the water coming in). The coxswain decided that to pass over a hand pump would risk unnecessary damage and so after one more unsuccessful approach when the yacht's mast lay across the lifeboat's foredeck, hitting Mechanic Rose across the forehead, a tenth and final run in was made and a towing warp was passed and successfully made fast on the yacht's foredeck.

About 200 foot of 2'/2 inch nylon was paid out and the tow towards Guernsey began at 0317. The MAYDAY was officially downgraded and the helicopter was released. While the yachtsmen slept, three in the lifeboat's cabin and the skipper in the yacht's cabin, the tow continued slowly towards St Peter Port, initially at only 2 knots.

St Peter Port lifeboat now returned from attending to the other yacht, Prairie Schooner, (which had successfully extricated herself from her predicament by means of a staysail) and offered to take over the tow. After a short time of observation, however, it became clear that Sea Victor was being towed as well as could be expected and to transfer the tow would only risk losing it. At 0415 St Peter Port lifeboat left for her station and Aldernevlifeboat continued with the tow.

As some lee was found to the north of Guernsey towing speed could gradually be increased. Aboard the yacht Mike O'Gorman, at the helm throughout, encouraged the skipper to help him clear the bilge suctions (blocked by pages from a nautical almanac) and to do some pumping.

At 0715 Alderney lifeboat was able to hand the yacht into the care of St Peter Port's harbour launch, just off the port.

After a short time secured to the quay while the crew took refreshments and inspected their boat for damage, Alderney lifeboat set off on passage back to station at 0820. She reached Brave Harbour at 0930 and wasimmediately refuelled whereupon another call came to escort a yacht with engine problems into harbour. With a change of crew the lifeboat carried out the service and returned once more to her mooring at 1140.

Following the service to Sea Victor, the bronze medal was awarded to Coxswain Stephen Shaw and the RNLI's thanks on vellum accorded to Assistant Mechanic Michael O'Gorman. Second Coxswain Martin Harwood, Motor Mechanic Nigel Rose and Crew Member Brian Markell all received medal service certificates..