Sailor rescued from damaged vessel 600 miles off Cornish coast

A solo sailor onboard a critically damaged yacht, around 600 nautical miles out at sea, was saved as part of a two-day rescue operation led by HM Coastguard.

In the midst of Storm Ciarán, which battered northern Europe in November, the vessel had lost its mast and was taking on water.

An initial beacon alert was received by HM Coastguard after the sailor activated the beacon while in the Atlantic Ocean, west of Cornwall.

Air assets and vessels in the vicinity were requested to head to the distress position to provide assistance. Due to the position of the yacht and the weather in the Atlantic, the first responding vessel estimated its arrival to be around 20 hours later. Despite this, they changed course and proceeded.

With the correct safety equipment onboard the yacht, the sailor could communicate with HM Coastguard throughout.

Support from the RAF, French air assets and vessels responding to the incident led to the sailor and vessel being located by aircraft before the first responding vessel arrived on the scene the following day.

The casualty was recovered to the responding vessel safe and well and taken to a place of safety.

Network Commander Tom Barnett says it was much easier for the sailor to be successfully located and rescued, thanks to them knowing what to do in an emergency and having the right equipment onboard.

“These kinds of rescue missions are so much more successful when vessels are kitted out correctly,” says Barnett. “We are able to respond and get to the heart of an incident must faster, and the chance of survival is so much higher.

“This sailor had an EPIRB (emergency position-indicating radio beacon) and knew how to use their VHF radio, which kept us updated on their location and health.

“These callouts also show the power of teamwork and good communication between us and other agencies. Without this, the result of this mission could have been very different.

“We are always ready to respond to anyone in need; in an emergency, call 999 and ask for the Coastguard.”

In October 2022, HM Coastguard rescued a sailor in similar conditions after a storm broke the mast of their ship in the Atlantic.

Thanks to the two beacons onboard however, the coastguard was swiftly able to locate the yacht and begin the search and rescue mission.

Pictures courtesy of the RAF.