The Tenby RNLI all-weather lifeboat and Burry Port’s inshore RNLI lifeboat are heading to Rhossili Bay this afternoon (27 August), as further attempts are made to recover a high and dry trawler, which ran aground in the early hours of yesterday morning.

The RNLI will not be involved in the salvage operation but will stand by and offer assistance if help is required as the operations gets underway.

Both RNLI lifeboats were first launched to the 50ft vessel Bruno of Sutton in the early hours of Tuesday morning following reports the Devon based fishing boat had ran aground with four crew on board. The Burry Port RNLI lifeboat on their second attempt due to rough seas managed to recover the crew from the stricken vessel and landed them ashore at Rhossili Beach to the care of the Coastguards..

The volunteer RNLI’s crew launched for the second time on Tuesday afternoon at 12:45pm to help re-float the trawler, which had gone aground after its anchor dragged.  The Burry Port inshore RNLI lifeboat was able to get close to the shore to   transfer the towrope from Tenby RNLI lifeboat to the trawler.

Matt Crofts, RNLI Deputy Divisional Inspector for the West says:

‘The RNLI crews at both Tenby and Burry Port have indeed done an excellent job in attempting to bring this trawler to safety. The RNLI’s volunteers worked through the night and then again the following afternoon to help recover the vessel, but she was too far up the beach. Swansea Coastguard have now requested that the RNLI is in the vicinity as further attempts are made to re-float the vessel this afternoon.’

Notes to editorsPlease find attached a j-peg image of the rescue operation yesterday. Further images are available by contacting Danielle Rush on the telephone numbers below.

RNLI media contacts
For further information, please contact Hugh Owen Burry Port RNLI Lifeboat Press Officer on 07717881650 or Danielle Rush, RNLI Media Relations Manager in Wales on 01745 585162 or 07786 668829, or email drush@rnli.org.uk

RNLI online
For more information on the RNLI please visit www.rnli.org.uk. News releases and other media resources, including RSS feeds, downloadable photos and video, are available at the RNLI Press Centre www.rnli.org.uk/press

Key facts about the RNLI
The RNLI charity saves lives at sea. Its volunteers provide a 24-hour search and rescue service around the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland coasts. The RNLI operates over 230 lifeboat stations in the UK and Ireland and has more than 100 lifeguard units on beaches around the UK. The RNLI is independent of Coastguard and government and depends on voluntary donations and legacies to maintain its rescue service. Since the RNLI was founded in 1824 its lifeboat crews and lifeguards have saved over 137,000 lives. The RNLI is a charity registered in England, Scotland and the Republic of Ireland.