The coxswain of the Exmouth lifeboat reminded yachtsmen of the need to think ahead, after refloating an 11m yacht that had gone aground near Orcombe Point.
The vessel, which was sailing from Dartmouth to Exmouth, was approaching the River Exe when the two people on board tried and failed to start the engine. Wind and tide began to carry the yacht towards the shore. The crew did not have time to reset the sails or put an anchor out. The vessel drifted across a rock ledge and grounded on sand near Sandy Bay.
Both Exe lifeboats were launched. As the ebb tide came to an end, the lifeboat crews attempted to tow the yacht free, but she was too hard aground. As the tide came in, the inshore lifeboat crew was eventually able to tow the yacht into deeper water and on to a mooring.
The coxswain, Tim Mock, said the two men onboard were well equipped but caught out by circumstance: “It was a cruel mixture of conditions that caused the incident.”
He added: “It is always worth double checking the state of your engine before visiting an estuary like the Exe, where the tide runs at up to five knots. I would also advise people approaching the area to start their engines further out to sea, where there is time to manoeuvre and react if there are problems.”
