J LIFEBOAT CREW INJURED AS MIZZEN MAST FALLS Six survivors snatched from yacht in Force 9 gale and heavy seas A service to a 50ft yacht by St Peter Port's Arun class lifeboat Sir William Arnold in atrocious weather conditions resulted in media headlines throughout the country - and a Silver medal for coxswain Peter Bisson and eight Thanks of the Institution inscribed on Vellum for the members of the crew, two of whom were injured during the rescue.The crew were: second coxswain John Bougard, mechanic James Youlton, assistant mechanic Keith Martel and crew members Robert Hamon, Philip Martel, Gary Cook, Andrew Le Provost and Vincent Helmot.

Divisional inspector of lifeboats for the South West, John Unwin, remarked in his official report that 'the conditions were extreme... without the coxswain's quick response, skill and bravery when the mizzen came down there would have been more serious injury and possibly loss of life.' He also praised the crew for the excellent way in which they ensured that the service was a success, clearing the decks and transferring the injured crew, then going back to the casualty.

Contact The 52ft Arun class lifeboat Sir William Arnold had first launched at 2350 on 29 August 1992, following a report that another yacht, the 23ftW7n'sfcy Mac, was in difficulty NE of Guernsey. She headed north-east up the Little Russel (the passage to the east of Guernsey) at full speed in a SSW Force 7 wind, rough seas and poor visibility. However, the lifeboat station's honorary secretary, Captain Tim Spencer, did not believe that the casualty was in the reported position as the only vessel which could contact her was well to the north. Alderney Harbour Office could receive a weak radio signal and asked the yacht to fire a flare at 0030 and then every ten minutes thereafter.

At 0025 Alderney's Waveney class lifeboat, Louis Marches! of Round Table, launched and headed south west downthe Swinge (the western side of the island) in a SSW Force 8, gusting 9. Both lifeboats saw the flares at 0030 and 0040 - establishing that Whisky Mac was, in fact, well to the north of Alderney.

At this moment a very broken Mayday was received from the 50ft yacht Sena Sioria, some 20 miles NW of the Hanois lighthouse, on the south-west tip of Guernsey.

St Peter Port radio asked Sir William Arnold to proceed to Sena Sioria while Alderney lifeboat handled Whisky Mac (see separate story - right).

At 0104 the St Peter Port lifeboat altered course and headed for the new position at full speed, while the SHS telephoned Falmouth coastguard to request helicopter assistance.

At 0150, with the wind now between SSW and SW at Force 7 to 8 gusting Force 9 and running against a 4 knot tide, the lifeboat managed to obtain a DF bearing and arrived on scene 15 minutes later.

The yacht was laying across wind and tide and rolling violently in a very rough sea with a 12ft to 15ft swell and breaking crests.Although the coxswain, Peter Bisson, knew a helicopter was due in 15 minutes he realised that air-lifting the casualties would be too difficult in view of the conditions and the fact that the yacht's mizzen had split and was flapping wildly and the foresail was shredded. He decided to evacuate the people aboard, appraaching the casualty's port quarter to allow the lifeboat crew to snatch the survivors as the lifeboat lay in against her.

Alarm The coxswain and second coxswain went to the upper steering position while the remainder of the crew with the exception of the mechanic, who manned the radio and told the casualty of the plan of action, went on the foredeck.

At 0215 the coxswain made his first run in and the lifeboat crew managed to get three people aboard before the coxswain had to back off.

The second run was aborted, the position was not right and the steering motor alarm sounded. The mechanic went to the engine room and found the drive beltof one motor had burned through, probably because water driving through the starboard engine room air intake had caused it to slip. The mechanic stayed in the engine room, operating the bilge pumps by hand, and at this moment two alternator control boxes and an alternator burnt out, the intake fan filled with water and tripped and the deckhead lining was being washed down.

On the third run the foredeck crew grabbed three more survivors. One jumped for the lifeboat still attached to the yacht by a safety line, but the lifeboat crew held him while one of the yacht's crew undipped the line.

At this moment, at around 0220, the coxswain saw the mizzen mast begin to fall towards the lifeboat and started to back away at full power. The mast landed on the foredeck, enveloping his crew in the rigging, which was still attached to the yacht. As the lifeboat backed off at full speed the crew were being dragged forward against stanchions and rails.

Injured The coxswain could see two of his crew lying on the deck, obviously in great pain, and went ahead again to put the lifeboat back alongside the yacht's quarter while the debris was cleared and the injured tended. All crew members had suffered varying degrees of bruising.

With the foredeck clear the coxswain backed away, handing over to the second coxswain to run slowly down wind while the situation was assessed.

There were still three people aboardthe yacht, but she was not sinking and could wait while the coxswain decided on his next move. Radio contact was established with the helicopter, which was due in ten minutes, and it was decided to air-lift the two injured crew members to hospital. With the coxswain back at the wheel the helicopter began lifting the injured men at 0230 - an extremely hazardous operation with the lifeboat moving violently in the rough seas and one which took a full hour.

At one point the helicopter winchman and crew member Gary Cook (in a stretcher) were attached to the wire when the lifeboat dropped about 15ft into a trough. The winchman somersaulted over the guardrail, clinging on with one hand, and the stretcher and Gary Cook were lifted 15ft into the air before being slammed back onto the foredeck as the lifeboat lifted on the next wave. Despite the immense difficulties morale aboard was high - as crew member Vincent Helmot was taken forward in the stretcher for the second lift, one of the crew shouted to the remaining crew in a 'stage whisper' not to tell him what happened during the first lift, raising a laugh despite the drama.

Jump The lifeboat stood by as the helicopter left for Guernsey at 0330 and awaited its return at about 0430. The pilot briefed the yacht crew to jump into the water one at a time while the lifeboat laid off ready to illuminate the survivors in the water.

The first lift from the sea took approximately ten minutes as the winchman had difficulty closing with the man in the water but eventually all three men were winched to safety and flown to Guernsey.

At 0515 the St Peter Port lifeboat began her passage back to station, which was uneventful except for the water entering the engine room which kept the mechanic below to monitor the situation.

On arrival at St Peter Port harbour the six survivors were taken to hospital for a check up, but there were no injuries except for a possible minor ankle injury.

The lifeboat crew refuelled the lifeboat and took her to the marina for inspection where they all turned-to and cleaned up the mess in the forecabin and aftercabin where the survivors had been violently ill.

The mechanic and assistant mechanic cleaned up the engine room and started repairs and Sir William Arnold was off service for just one-and-a-half-hours while the work was carried out.

Crew Member Gary Cook was kept in hospital for 24 hours but both injured men have made a full recovery. The yacht was later located north of Cap de la Hague and towed to Alderney by a fishing vessel.

Three rescued from yacht in severe gales The events leading up to Alderney lifeboat' s service to the 23ft yacht Whisky Mac are recounted in the report of St Peter Port lifeboat's Silver Medal service to the yacht Sena Sioria (main story, this page). St Peter Port's Arun was called away to deal with the second yacht when it was established that Wliisky Mac was well to the north of Alderney (not to the south as she had originally reported).

The Waveney, Louis Marchesi of Round Table, was able to obtain a bearing on a flare fired by the yacht at 0040 and set a course to the NW towards her actual position, some 17 miles distant.

With a southerly wind now touchingAlder ney South West Division Force 9 it took the lifeboat until 0159 to reach Wh isky Mac, where the lifeboat crew first saw her through a rain squall, surfing down a large wave on her beam ends with her three crew huddled in the cockpit. The coxswain and crew were surprised to note that the companionway hatch was open and the washboards out.

The sea was very rough, with a swell almost 20ft high, and so the coxswain decided that the safest course of action was to tow the yacht with the survivors still aboard - recognising the risk that in the severe conditions it was possible that such a small boat might break up under tow.

Three attempts were necessary before a tow line could be put aboard Whisky Mac, and during the first of these the yacht surfed down a wave and almost landed on the lifeboat, which had to be driven hard astern to avoid the casualty.

The long tow back to Alderney, upwind in very rough conditions and with winds gusting now to Force 10 was difficult, with only small alterations of course possible to avoid damage to the casualty.

The tow had to be suspended for a while when the yacht's outboard engine broke loose and threatened to hole the vessel, but this was secured again and the lifeboat and tow finally reached the shelter of Braye Harbour, Alderney at 0630.

The yacht was secured to a mooring with the aid of the station's boarding boat and the lifeboat was refuelled and ready for service again at 0700.

The actions of the crew in such difficult conditions were recognised in a letter of appreciation sent to them by the Institution's chief of operations Commodore George Cooper.TWO MEN PULLED TO SAFETY AS VESSEL SINKS Tyne's inflatable used to reach stranded fishing boat survivors A service to a 17ft fishing vessel and her crew of two in hazardous conditions, among rocks and in rough seas, has earned two men from Wick's lifeboat station the Thanks of the Institution inscribed on Vellum. Coxswain Walter McPhee was said by the inspector of lifeboats for Scotland North Division* to have '...acted with determination and high standard of seamanship and leadership', while acting second coxswain Ian Cormack was praised for his 'determination, seamanship and courage' in the small inflatable X boat used in the rescue.The other crew members aboard during the service - mechanic John Martin, assistant mechanic Alexander Durrand and assistant winchman, acting crew member Hugh Gunn - have all received Vellum Service certificates On 11 May 1992 Coxswain Walter McPhee arrived at the boathouse for an evening of maintenance on the lifeboat to be told by his crew that they had just overheard a VHP message to Pentland Coastguard reporting red flares off Staxigoe. The coxswain telephoned Pentland coastguard who confirmed that a small boat was on the rocks off Staxigoe, and two people were in the water.

A 1924 Wick's 47ft Tyne class lifeboat Norman Salvesen launched and proceeded on service in a SE Force 5 to 6 which was creating a rough sea with a swell some 6ft high. With only an hour to high water the stream was flowing south at about one knot.Coxswain McPhee passed only two cables to seaward of North Head, then just one cable clear of the rocks known as the Tails of Elsay. From there the casualty could be seen, swamped and with seas breaking over her deck at times. The twoman crew of Wave Dancer were on the rocks nearby without lifejackets, and police and coastguards could be seen on the shore. The lifeboat closed with the casualty at 1931 and laid-off about two boatlengths to windward.

Although the weather conditions were still as they had been at the lifeboat house acting second coxswain Ian Cormack volunteered to take the X boat (an inflat-able carried aboard the lifeboat) which had been prepared during the passage to the casualty, carrying lifejackets for the survivors.

A line was attached to the inflatable which was then rowed down to the casualty.

Operating at the limits of the boat and always in danger of capsizing, Ian Cormack managed to throw the lifejackets to the survivors and made it clear that the coxswain would make no attempt to bring them aboard or save their boat until they had donned the lifejackets. The survivors put the lifejackets on and re-boarded their stranded boat.

The propeller of Wave Dancer had been fouled by the line of the last of her 25 creel pots as they were hauled in, and with the propeller stopped the vessel had been ashore within two minutes. The fishermen had thrown all the creel pots back into the water to lighten the vessel and the lifeboat coxswain was now having difficulty in keeping the lifeboat clear of the lines, pots and rocks, while manoeuvring to counteract the tide which was pushing the lifeboat along the shore.

Coxswain McPhee repositioned Norman Salvesen to pass a tow line, which was passed into the X-boat so that Ian Cormack could once again approach the casualty. The first attempt was aborted when the X-boat was partially swamped by a breaking wave and had to be pulled back alongside the lifeboat. Once again the lifeboat was repositioned and the Xboat approached the casualty. The tow line was thrown to them and secured, but not before one of the survivors had been washed into the sea - although he was able to scramble back aboard as the next wave washed through.

Continued on following pageStromness Scotland North Division* An 11-hour service by the Stromness Arun class lifeboat Neivsbuoy, reported in the Autumn issue of THE LIFEBOAT, has been recognised in a letter of thanks to the whole crew from thelnstitution'schairmanMichael Vernon.

The service,tothereplica!2th century sailing vesselAileach, took place on 17 June 1992 when nine men were taken off the vessel after her steering failed.

Mr Vernon said in his letter: This was a long service carried out in a thoroughly seamanlike manner with a fine display of teamwork.'Short but effective service by D class saves fiveThe RNLFs Chief of Operations has written to the crew of Burry Port's D class inflatable lifeboatcommending the quick, positive thinking by the helmsman, good seamanship and boat handling on his behalf and team work by his crew following a short but effective service which lasted only 13 minutes but resulting in the rescue of five people.

The events leading up to the service started at the previous high water, when the vessel, The firm, became stranded on the bank at the mouth of the Pembrey Channel.

That evening, as the tide flooded, two people waded out to float her off on the evening tide but could not start the en-gine. Another vessel, Triple A, went to her assistance to try and tow her off.

The wind was south westerly Force 5, producing a short choppy sea which was breaking over the bank from all directions.Because of the shape of the bank Triple A could not get head-to-sea in any direction and was being buffeted continually.Eventually a tow line was passed, but this fouled Tn'pfe/l's propeller justas TheFirm was lifting and grounding repeatedly on top of the bank, changing heading with each sea.

The helmsman, Hugh Owen, saw the casualties being pounded and swamped on the bank and went to the boathouse to alert the crew and then phoned Swansea coastguard to advise them of the situation.

The casualties were barely a quarter-of-amile from the boathouse, but the very confused sea on the bank itself meant that the helmsman had to pick his way to the most sheltered side of the two vessels.

He approached on the north side, to obtain the best lee from the prevailing wind and sea, but the inflatable was continually shipping water in the short, steep seas reflected from the back of the Burry Port breakwater.

By this time the smaller Triple A was on the windward side of The Firm, and her crew had boarded the larger boat.

Transferring five people from The Firm into the inshore lifeboat was extremely difficult as the confused seas kept pushing the boats apart.

However, the transfer was achieved without mishap due to good boat handling by the helmsman and team work by the crew.

Returning to the lifeboat station was also made difficult by the confused state of the seas near the casualty and by a beam sea when rounding the breakwater.

With seven people aboard large quantities of water were taken aboard during these manoeuvres, making the heavily laden boat even more sluggish.

All five casualties were landed safely.Fishing boat continued from previous pag The coxswain towed Wave Dancer gently off the rocks stern first, applying minimal power as each wave crest passed the casualty. As the 17ft vessel cleared the rocks she was very low in the water and when only 30ft away from them she started to settle very fast. The X boat was secure alongside the lifeboat and before coxswain McPhee could manoeuvre alongside the casualty she sank and the two men in the water were being carried downtide very fast.

Shouting to the survivors to swim clear of the rocks, the coxswain manoeuvred around the wreckage, ropes from the casualty and the dangerous rocks. Ian Cormack was once again in the X-boat, on a line from the lifeboat, and using the oars managed to catch hold of one survivor who was transferred to the lifeboat.

The other man had been thrown back onto the rocks and Ian Cormack was able to approach the man and pull him aboard the X boat. The inflatable was hauled back to the lifeboat which was then brought clear of the rocks at 1948.

The return passage was made at full speed, with both survivors suffering from cold and shock and wrapped in blankets.

An ambulance was asked to meet Norman Salvesen on arrival in Wick Harbour at 2000 where the two survivors were transferred to Wick hospital. They were allowed home later that evening.ELDERLY PASSENGERS RESCUED FROM FERRY Thirty one passengers rescued from ferry aground on rocks The Chairman of the the Institution, Michael Vernon, has written to the coxswain and crew of the Lerwick lifeboat after the rescue of 31 passengers, mostly elderly, from a stranded ferry. Mr Vernon praised the coxswain, Hewitt Clark, for his high standard of seamanship and boat handling and the whole crew for the smooth running of the rescue.The 50ft passenger ferry Laerling, with 36 passengers from a coach tour and two crew members aboard, had run aground on rocks to the SE of the Isle of Noss, Shetland on 22 July 1992.

The coastguard paged the station's honorary secretary at 2030, and two minutes later the coxswain/mechanic, who was in the lifeboat station at the time, contacted the coastguard to discover that of the 38 people on board 32 were elderly and in some distress.

Lerwick's Arun class lifeboat Soldian, launched at 2040 and made best speed to the casualty's position, learning while on passage that a rescue helicopter already overhead would take off the four children aboard and one adult. The lift was successful, but with the vessel in a precarious position on rocks the severe downdraught from the rotors was causing her to roll violently.

Arriving at the scene at 2105 the lifeboat advised that she would go alongside to rescue the remaining passengers. In the Force 5 wind and 6ft swell the casualty was still pitching and rolling despite being stuck on top of the rock.

Coxswain/mechanic Clark used his seamanship and boat handling skills tobring the lifeboat alongside the heaving casualty, and it took just ten minutes for the crew of Soldian to transfer the remaining 31 passengers aboard the lifeboat.The crew remained on board as the coxswain had decided he would try to tow the casualty clear of the rocks, and by 2125 the Arun had succeeded - standing by while Laerling's crew checked for leaks.

As none were found and two other vessels had arrived on the scene the lifeboat left them to escort the casualty and returned to Lerwick with the passengers, some of whom were in a distressed state.

At 2209 the lifeboat berthed in North Harbour, directly opposite the hotel where the survivors, all members of a holiday trip, were staying, and by 2225 Soldian was refuelled, back on station and ready for service.

The helicopter landed the remaining five survivors at an emergency helipad in Lerwick.

*From 1 November 1992 Scotland has been a single operational division. At the time of this service Scotland North was a separate division.Prompt action at Margate saves a life Margate's lifeboat coxswain Peter Barker and crew member Clive Simpson saved a man's life without recourse to the station's Mersey or the D class inflatable.

On Saturday 3 October 1992 a woman ran into the lifeboat house to say there a man was in the water on the rocks off the Winter Gardens.

Peter Barker alerted other members of the crew, but rather than waiting for the lifeboat to be launched he and Clive Simpson ran across the beach and rocks and waded up to their waists to reach the man, who was about 60, lying facedown in a gully.

Although there was no sign of life when they carried him from the water they began artificial respiration and he began to revive. He was taken to hospital where he recovered.

Alan Wear, the station's honorary secretary, praised the two men. They acted very promptly,' he said, 'if they had waited for the boat to be launched, the man would have died.'.