MAY 26TH. GREAT YARMOUTH AND GORLESTON, NORFOLK. At 12.35 P.M.

a message was received from the Caister alert station that two naval speed boats had gone aground on the Scroby Sand. A light S.S.E.

breeze was blowing ; the sea was smooth, but there was a mist. At 12.50 P.M. the motor lifeboat Louise Stephens was launched and she reached the Scroby Sands forty minutes later. She found the two speed boats aground on the top of the sand. She approached them, but grounded herself. A small dinghy from one of the speed boats was then rowed towards the life-boat, bringing a rope for towing with her, but she could not reach the life-boat, so the life-boat fired a line over the dinghy; pulled it alongside; took the rope on board; and made it fast. The life-boat then tried for about three-quarters of an hour to haul off the speed boats, but the tide was falling and the life-boat again touched bottom. The coxswain bent on two mooring ropes, two veering lines and two heaving lines to the tow-rope and moved away from the sands until he was able to anchor in ten feet of water. It was then 3 P.M., but with the tide falling it was impossible for the life-boat to tow any longer.

About 5 P.M. an officer from the speed boat came out in the dinghy to say that the lifeboat could get nearer to the speed boats on the east side of the sands, but the life-boat was now hard aground, and could not get off.

It was not until 7.30 that she refloated, and she then went round to the east side. There she went alongside a paddle minesweeper which had just arrived and its captain asked the coxswain his opinion of the weather and the risk run by the men on the two speed boats. The coxswain told him that the sands would be covered with from three to four feet of water at high tide, and if the weather got worse the men on board the speed boats might be in considerable danger ; for the lifeboat could not get near them. At the request of the captain of the minesweeper the coxswain then took the life-boat as near as possible to the speed boats and dropped anchor in four feet of water. Four men from each speed boat were taken on board the life-boat, which transferred them to the minesweeper. This left four men on each speed boat. A tug from Yarmouth had now arrived and the coxswain of the life-boat advised the captain of the minesweeper that the best way to refloat the boats would be to get a gradual strain on the hawsers just after midnight. At 12.45 A.M. on the 27th the tug refloated one of the two boats and the lifeboat went alongside her and found that she was quite seaworthy. The tug then towed this boat to harbour and the life-boat lay alongside the minesweeper while the minesweeper tried to tow off the other boat with its windlass. At 1.30 A.M. the rope parted.

The life-boat then went in towards the sands to see if she could re-connect the tow ; let go anchor and veered down until she herself was touching bottom. The dinghy then brought out a rope to the life-boat, which started to tow but the rope parted again. The lifeboat veered down again, and until 3 A.M.

was trying to pull the speed boat off the sands but without success. The tide was now falling and nothing more could be done until it rose again. As the weather was fine the captain of the minesweeper told the lifeboat coxswain that he could return to his station, and that a signal would be made if his help were again wanted. The life-boat arrived back at Gorleston at 5 A.M., remained afloat until 11 and then, as no signal was made, was  rehoused. - Rewards, £19 14s..