Sligo Bay RNLI’s volunteer crew were requested to launch by Malin Head Coast Guard shortly after 4pm on Sunday (17 September) to assist a lone sailor aboard a 38ft yacht eight miles out at sea.
The inshore lifeboat Sheila and Dennis Tongue at launched at 4.17pm with four crew members onboard and was on scene half an hour later amid good sea conditions.
Following an assessment, the lifeboat crew found the sailor to be fine but the wind had dropped and the yacht had experienced engine failure so was not able to make any headway.
The sailor reacting quickly, had called 999 and requested assistance from the coastguard who in turn paged the lifeboat.
A lifeboat crew member went onboard to assist the sailor with setting up a tow before the yacht was brought to the nearest safe port in Sligo town.
Speaking after the rescue, Sligo Bay RNLI helm Michael Waters said: “We launched to a 38ft steel-hull yacht with one crew onboard that found itself becalmed due to no wind and engine failure eight miles west of the Wheat Rock buoy.
“One of the lifeboat crew was put onboard to help the sailor with the tow back to Sligo. The tow was quickly established, and we proceed to the pontoon in Sligo town arriving at 7.20pm.”
Once the yacht was safely tied up, the lifeboat returned to the station where it was was washed down, refuelled and made ready for service again by the volunteer shore crew.