Video: fishermen saved in dramatic rescue after boat fire

The UK Coastguard and the RNLI both responded to the mayday call.

Three fishermen were winched to safety in a dramatic rescue after their boat caught fire some 40 miles off the Cornish coast.

The UK Coastguard received a mayday broadcast just before 1pm yesterday, 2 March, concerning an engine room fire onboard the vessel and crew suffering from smoke inhalation.

Both the Coastguard search and rescue helicopter based at Newquay and the Lizard RNLI lifeboat were deployed to the scene.

Three of the boat’s five crew members were winched off the fishing vessel onto the helicopter and transferred to hospital.

The fishing vessel, with the remaining crew, was able to sail to Newlyn, near Penzance in Cornwall, under its own power. The Lizard RNLI lifeboat escorted the fishing vessel to ensure it arrived safely.

Steve Mann, a spokesman for the UK Coastguard, said: “Fortunately the crew were able to extinguish the fire, they were also able to contact the Coastguard when they needed assistance. This is another example why it is so important to make sure that you have appropriate safety equipment on board and several means of contacting the Coastguard if the worst should happen.”

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