Four divers snatched from explosives danger areaPrompt action by Whitby' s Tyne class lifeboat during the exploding of a war-time land mine has earned the Coxswain and crew a letter of thanks from the RNLI's chief of operations.

A Whitby fishing boat had trawled up the 1,0001b mine in her nets and left it on the seabed nearby to be made safe.

The lifeboat was launched shortly after 1130 on 27 February 1989 to take a party of four Royal Navy divers from Rosyth out to the land-mine, together with their equipment and an inflatable dinghy.

The divers found the mine, attached explosives to it and set the three-minute fuse which would safely detonate the l,0001b device. It was essential for them to leave the area promptly, but the outboard engine on the divers' inflatable chose that moment to refuse to start.Coxswain Peter Thomson quickly assessed the situation from his position outside the danger zone and rapidly drove the lifeboat alongside the RN inflatable. Passing a towline the lifeboat towed the dinghy and four divers away to safety. After some 40 yards the inflatable's engine was started and both vessels quickly cleared the areajust before the 1,0001b of explosive detonated, sending a column of water 200ft in the air and shaking the windows of the Coastguard look-out more than a mile away.

In his letter the chief of operations observed that: 'In my view the action taken by Coxswain Peter Thomson and his crew was an act of courage and quick thinking, and most deservedly earned the praise and thanks of the Royal Navy diving team.'.