Saviours at the sand When faced with 3m swells, notorious sandbanks and a drifting, rolling fishing vessel, it cannot be easy to stay calm. But the composure and courage of a helmsman and her crew in just such conditions saved two lives - and made historyThe Nash sandbanks off Porthcawl, south Wales, have claimed the lives of several fishermen over the years. When the fishing vessel Cower Pride suffered engine failure on the morning of 24 August 2004, she was left at their mercy in force 8 south westerly winds and rough seas.

Skipper Gordon Woosnam was seriously concerned. His vessel was pitching and rolling dangerously near to the sandbanks, and a fellow crew member was nursing a broken arm. He radioed the Swansea Coastguard shortly after 11am. Porthcawl's B class Atlantic 75 lifeboat, dies, was launched within ten minutes, commanded by Helmsman Aileen Jones. The challenging conditions led her to take along three of the Porthcawl crew rather than two - fellow Helmsman Stephen Knipe and Crew Members Simon Emms and Mark Burtonwood.

Mark remembers: 'It was very windy that day and waves were breaking over the pier.' Stephen was operating the radio and established contact with the casualty. 'I had to tell the Cower Pride skipper to slow down,' he explains. 'It was not clear where he was.' The crew calmly discussed their course of action, agreeing that once they located the vessel, they would need to establish a tow and then assess the situation.

As they ran along the north if* .^IBMB^^I side of the Nash sandbanks, Aileen realised that the casualtywas to the south of the banks and that she would have to take the lifeboat around the East Nash buoy. Aileen guided dies through steep and confused seas to reach the south side of the bank. She knew the Atlantic 75 was now operating at its limits and requested the launch of Ethel Anne Measures, The Mumbles all weather lifeboat.

Skilful seamanship Cower Pride skipper Cordon Woosnam was overcome with relief when he saw the Porthcawl lifeboat on the way. He said: 'It was the most pleasing thing I have seen in my whole life when they turned up. It was like winning the National Lottery.' But the hard work was just beginning.

Aileen deftly brought the lifeboat close enough to throw a line to the fishing boat, where it was secured to the bow.

The Porthcawl lifeboat began slowly to pull the Cower Pride away from the bank, but then, suddenly, the line parted. The fishing boat drifted towards the bank again, leaving the rescue effort back at square one.

'It was not a nice place to be and we just had to get the boat back out again,'says Aileen. 'It was quite dangerous but you are so busy getting on with it you do not really think about that.' A second attempt was made, this time with Aileen skilfully bringing the lifeboat close enough for Crew Member Simon Emms to clamber aboard thefishing vessel with the tow line, a VHP radio, and a first aid kit.

At that moment, a large breaking wave hit the Cower Pride on the starboard side and threw her against the lifeboat, hurling a dan buoy from the fishing vessel onto Mark.

Luckily, he was not hurt and Aileen manoeuvred the two vessels apart and started the tow again.

Mark points out: 'Aileen's seamanship was fantastic. She had to take all the skills she had learned from being a crew member and helmsman and use them together, as safely and as quickly as possible.' He managed the towline while the lifeboat battled with the surf, occasionally lifting right out of the water under the strain of the heavy fishing vessel.

A helping hand The Mumbles lifeboat Coxswain Martin Double and his crew arrived on scene aboard theTyne class Ethel Anne Measures at 12.50pm, by which time the Porthcawl lifeboat had towed the casualty south of the Mid Nash buoy. Simon was still aboard Cower Pride, having put the injured crew member's arm in a sling and helped him to the wheelhouse. He was instructed by Martin to make his way forward to receive another tow line and had to bravely crawl along the boat, which was rolling heavily. He says: 'I was struggling as there was not much to hold onto and it was really slippery.' The Mumbles crew tried twice to throw a line toSimon, but the conditions made it impossible, and Martin decided to try and bring the Ethel Anne Measures within arm's reach.

He recalls: 'It was quite a sight, seeing Simon Emms climbing over the boat. The Cower Pride was in danger of going right over and our own rails were underwater at times. You have to time it just right.' With excellent boat handling, he brought The Mumbles lifeboat close enough for Simon to receive the tow line and secure it. Porthcawl lifeboat's tow line was then released and Simon crawled back to the shelter of the Cower Pride's aft deck.

By now it was 1 pm and The Mumbles lifeboat reported to Swansea Coastguard that they had the fishing vessel in tow and were heading for Porthcawl Harbour. The tow was made as slow as possible, with just one engine, so that the casualty did not turn over in the conditions. The Porthcawl crew followed the vessels until they reached the shelter of Porthcawl pier, where they took the injured fisherman off the Cower Pride and over to a waiting ambulance at the edge of the slipway. Having towed the casualty to safety,The Mumbles lifeboat crew then faced an uncomfortable journey back to their station. 'We took a beating, but we are used to that,' reflected Martin. Meanwhile, the Porthcawl lifeboat was refuelled and declared ready for service at 2.30pm.

An historic rescue Aileen was full of praise for her crew - and the Atlantic 75 lifeboat - after the rescue.She said: 'It was one of the best services that I have done personally but anybody on that boat that day could have done the job.

'I was pleased we got to the boat before they got onto the bank and glad no lives were lost. We just worked so well together and the lifeboat is a brilliant piece of kit. The shore helpers were great too.' She has been awarded the RNLI's Bronze Medal for Gallantry for her courage, seamanship and leadership, and is the first woman for more than 100 years to receive such an accolade (see feature, page 14).

Crew Member Simon Emms was accorded the Thanks of the Institution Inscribed on Vellum for his courage and determination.

'After holding onto the boat like that, Simon is now known as Spiderman,'jokes Helmsman Stephen Knipe, who along with Mark Burtonwood received medal service badges and certificates.

Coxswain Martin Double of The Mumbles lifeboat received a letter of appreciation signed by RNLI Chief Executive Andrew Freemantle. Martin says:'My crew are a good bunch of lads who make my job easy. It is good for them to get some recognition.' The rescued fishermen have since made donations to the RNLI, and skipper Gordon Woosnam added: ' They were very brave that day. I fit was not for Aileen and her crew I would not be here.'INSHORE LIFEBOAT B class Atlantic 75 B-726 C//65 Funding: Sunday Express Lottery and RNLI funds THE CREW Helmsman: Aileen Jones Crew Members: Helmsman Stephen Knipe Mark Burtonwood Simon Emms PORTHCAWL LIFEBOAT STATION Established: 1860, closed 1902, re-opened 1965 Previous RNLI Medals: 9 Silver and 2 Bronze ALL WEATHER LIFEBOAT Tyne class ON-1096 (47-005) Ethel Anne Measures Funding: The James Frederick and Ethel Anne Measures Charity, The Mumbles Lifeboat Appeal, The Lord Mayor of Birmingham Appeal and The Pebble Mill Appeal with other gifts and legacies THE CREW Coxswain: Martin Double Crew Members: Graham Wright, Stephen Ace, Kevin Rees, Daniel Wright Huw Mathias, James Fillery THE MUMBLES LIFEBOAT STATION Established: 1863 (known as Swansea lifeboat station until 1904) Previous RNLI Medals: 1 Gold, 13 Silver and 5 Bronze THE CASUALTY Fishing boat and 2 crew THE CONDITIONS Weather: Sunny Visibility: Good Wind: Force 7 to gale force 8 Sea state: Rough, 3m swell.