Unmanned yacht prompts search for man overboard

At 11am this morning Thames Coastguard were alerted to an unmanned yacht off the Red Sands Towers by the motor vessel El Bravo II. The yacht, named Serendipity, had her engine running but there was no-one aboard.

There was little initial information to suggest where the yacht had come from or what had occurred to leave the vessel unmanned. Further investigation revealed that the yacht with one person aboard had set out from the Pyefleet Channel near Colchester at 6am that morning bound for the river Medway in Kent.

Thames Coastguard scrambled fixed Coastguard wing aircraft Echo November and RAF rescue Helicopter 125, and requested the launch of Sheerness and Whitstable RNLI Lifeboats. Four Police vessels also assisted in the search.

Less than an hour from the initial call the man was spotted floating in a dinghy by the rescue helicopter. He was found to be cold but otherwise uninjured and was later reunited with his yacht which was towed into Queensborough by Sheerness RNLI lifeboat.

Watch Officer Steve Labouchardiere said:

"The gentleman was attempting to re-secure the dinghy to his yacht when a line broke, leaving the man left behind in his dinghy and the yacht traveling away from him with all communications equipment on board.

The man was located extremely quickly by the rescue helicopter. By then he had been adrift in his dinghy for two hours, but although extremely cold he was found to be otherwise safe and well."