Exmouth RNLI called out in the night to distressed man on boat, 6 ½ miles out to sea in Lyme Bay.

Brixham

Coastguards tasked Exmouth RNLI volunteer crew on Sunday 10th July

at 9.28pm - after reports of a distressed man in a Dory boat being hostile with

a passing yacht crew.

The

American crew on a 72ft yacht reported that the man had initially flagged them

down but when they pulled alongside him, he became hostile and began throwing

things at them. They pulled away quickly and reported this to Brixham

Coastguards and the all weather lifeboat Margaret Jean was launched from Exmouth.

Giles

White, Deputy Coxswain said: "Because we had reports that the man was

apparently threatening to self harm, we took along two policeman with us."

"When we

met with the yacht crew, they said the man had moved on and pointed in the

direction they thought he went."The Devon

and Cornwall police helicopter, on return from Plymouth, joined in the

search.  The boat was found in a

different location to initially thought, 7.6 miles out to sea, but the man was

no longer on the boat. Further sweeps of the area found him attached to a

Fender Buoy in the water.The

volunteer lifeboat crew proceeded to the location of the man and tried to

negotiate with him. The man had attached himself to the buoy with a rope and

was not willing to talk. Eventually, as he had been in the water some time he

agreed to be picked up by the crew as he was becoming hypothermic.Giles

added; "We had to proceed cautiously as we didn't know if the man had any

weapons with him. But it was quite clear early on that he wouldn't pose a

threat to us and so we got him out of the water as quickly as possible and

proceeded best speed back to Exmouth where an ambulance was waiting.The

volunteer all weather lifeboat crew then returned to the area to tow back the

Dory because leaving it may have caused a shipping hazard.