TWO FISHERMEN RESCUED FROM SEA OFF BIDEFORD
Two fishermen were rescued
from the sea off Bideford this evening after their 16 ft fishing boat ‘Sophie
Jane’ capsized on Bideford Bar
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Swansea Coastguard was
alerted to the men’s predicament by a 999 call from a member of the public at
6.12pm. The member of the public reported that he had seen an open boat with a
red hull on the bar and it had now disappeared.
The Appledore RNLI Inshore
Lifeboat was sent to the scene where they found two men sitting on the upturned
hull of the boat. They managed to refloat the vessel and brought it, and the
two crew men, back to Appledore where they were met by the Westward Ho Coastguard
Rescue Team.
David Jones Swansea Coastguard Watch Manager said;
“It appears that the fishing
vessel broke down on its way back to Bideford and was tipped over by the waves
on the Bideford Bar. It happened so quickly that the crew didn’t have time to
call for assistance and were lucky that a member of the public spotted the
vessel disappearing from the horizon. Luckily the men didn’t need any medical
attention.
“We recommend that
commercial fishermen wear a personal floatation device and that all vessels are
fitted with VHF DSC radio equipment that can sent a distress alert. It should
also be linked up to GPS so an accurate position of your vessel is received by
the Coastguard.”
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