The 17-year-old boy hit his head after falling out of his Laser dinghy in Stokes Bay on The Solent. He was rescued by the independent Gosport & Fareham Inshore Rescue Service (GAFIRS)

A 17-year-old boy, who had fallen out of a capsized dinghy in The Solent and hit his head, was saved by rescuers on 14 January 2017.

Volunteer lifeboat crews from Gosport & Fareham Inshore Rescue Service (GAFIRS) were returning from an exercise in Cowes when they were flagged down by a passing sailor.

The sailor alerted the crew of GAFIRS’ inshore lifeboat to a fellow seamen who had fallen out of his Laser dinghy and hit his head.

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The coxswain of the Gosport-based inshore lifeboat, Chris Newbrook said: “The casualty was located around a mile south west of our station in Stokes Bay where he was clinging to the underside of his boat.”

“He was clearly in shock, but had no blood loss from the injury. After assessment we deemed it necessary to evacuate the male and ask for Gosport lifeboat to attend the incident too as the capsized dinghy was drifting near the north channel shipping lane,” explained Newbrook.

The teenager was evacuated and taken back to the GAFIRS station, in Lifeboat Lane, Gosport.

“We beached the inshore lifeboat and the GAFIRS medical team treated the concussed male in the lifeboat station’s medical room,” added the inshore lifeboat coxswain.

South Central Ambulance Service and the coastguard’s Hillhead Mobile unit also attended the incident.

The 17-year-old was taken to Queen Alexander Hospital, Cosham, for further treatment and his dinghy returned to Stokes Bay Sailing Club.

The incident was GAFIRS’ second of 2017.