At 10.05am on Sunday, July 11, Abersoch RNLI launched their inshore lifeboat (ILB) in response to a mayday call from a yacht taking in water near Muddy Hollow 4 miles south of Ynysoedd Tudwal.
There were four adults on board. In a swelling sea an RNLI volunteer crew member boarded the 41ft wooden sloop with a salvage pump, which made only a very small difference. At one stage the sea water was knee deep. Pwllheli RNLI’s all weather lifeboat (ALB) and a rescue helicopter had been called with extra salvage pumps. But on scene the helicopter developed gearbox problems and immediately had to return to base.
Two Pwllheli RNLI volunteer crew members boarded the casualty vessel with a salvage pump and the situation was soon under control.
Once the Pwllheli RNLI’s ALB started towing the casualty to Pwllheli Marina, the Abersoch volunteers returned to station.