Watch: Dramatic rescue of crew aboard sinking fishing boat
The crew of a sinking fishing boat had to swim for their lives in a dramatic rescue off the west coast of Scotland.
Two members of the four-person crew had stayed aboard the boat after it began to take on water, as it was slowly towed by a lifeboat back to shore for repairs.
However, the fishing boat began suddenly listing and sank, meaning the crew were forced into the rough seas and had to swim to the rescue craft in heavy winds.
Footage, captured by the Oban Royal National Lifeboat Institution, showed the two fishermen desperately swimming to the lifeboat in the Atlantic Ocean.
Ally Cerexhe, Oban lifeboat’s Coxswain, said high winds and a significant swell made the operation difficult.
“What had been a slow tow suddenly changed and the fishing vessel listed heavily and then sank very quickly, forcing the two members to abandon the boat and swim across to us,” he said.
“I’d like to thank my coastguard colleagues and the crew of the Celtic Guardian who assisted during the operation.”
Oban Lifeboat crew were called shortly before 1pm on Wednesday to go to the aid of the 17-metre fishing boat, which was taking on water south of the Garvellachs, a small archipelago in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland.
When it arrived 50 minutes later, two of the fishermen were on a life raft while the two others had stayed on board to try to stem the inflow of water.
The fishermen on the raft were brought aboard the lifeboat and a decision was taken to tow the vessel to Oban for repairs.
The Prestwick-based coastguard helicopter Rescue 199 and a local workboat were standing by, but strong winds and a heavy sea made it impossible to transfer members of the lifeboat crew across to the fishing boat.
Around an hour into the tow, about two miles south west of Easdale Island, the fishing vessel radioed asking for the speed to be reduced as they believed water was starting to come in again through the prop shaft.
Within minutes, the fishing boat took on water and began leaning to the left (port) side. The lifeboat, having cut the tow, returned quickly to the vessel which then sank in a matter of minutes.
The two remaining people on the fishing vessel entered the water before they could be pulled to safety by the lifeboat crew.
The lifeboat eventually returned to Oban, where the four crew members were passed into the care of the Scottish Ambulance Service and coastguard team members.
