Gafirs called to four incidents on Saturday

Gosport and Fareham Inshore Rescue Service (Gafirs) was called to a medical emergency, two stricken vessels and a search.

Yesterday morning, the UK Coastguard requested the lifeboat to launch to a fishing vessel in trouble. The craft, which had two adults and two children on board, had suffered engine failure off Gilkicker Point and its anchor was stuck.

Gafirs coxswain Mike Allen said: ‘My crew boarded, checked everyone was safe and well, and were forced to cut the anchor free. We towed the vessel into Haslar Marina.’

At 7.11pm on the same day, the crew were called to a medical emergency in Stokes Bay after someone onboard a boat suffered a dislocated shoulder.

As the lifeboat recovered to the slipway, at 7.54pm, a Pan Pan distress call was heard on the radio from a vessel in Portsmouth Harbour.

Mike added: ‘We located it near Portchester Castle where the police RIB was helping to tow it free of a mud bank. We took over and helped get the vessel, and its crew of two adults and a child, safely alongside Gosport Marina.’

Then, at 8.56pm, UK Coastguard paged them to assist with a search at Stoke Lake, off Little Anglesey Road, Gosport. A paddle board and surf board were recovered by the Coastguard’s mud rescue team, with assistance from Gafirs, and an extensive search of the area carried out.