A lifeboat crew rescued an angler stranded in a shipping lane in the English Channel on Christmas Day.
Eastbourne RNLI said: “At 12.40pm on Wednesday25 December our volunteer crew were paged by Solent Coastguard, requesting the launch of our All Weather Lifeboat ‘Esme Anderson’ tasked to assist an angling boat with mechanical failure in the middle of the shipping lanes 16 miles south of Sovereign Harbour.
“Leaving their family plans, our volunteer crew made their way to the station and launched through the locks at 1pm, making their way to the casualty vessel with one person on board.
“Once on scene, the coxswain and crew checked on the person on the casualty vessel before making the decision to take the vessel under tow to get the yacht and its crew out of the shipping lanes and back to the safety of Sovereign Harbour where repairs could be undertaken.
“They arrived back into the locks at Sovereign Harbour just after 4pm.
“Once back in the harbour, our volunteers prepared the lifeboat ahead of its next tasking.
“They were then stood down, returning home to rejoin their families and tuck into their Christmas dinners.”
