On February 15, a crew member was injured onboard a cargo ship and was rescued by an all-weather lifeboat.
What happened?
A chief engineer was reportedly injured onboard the cargo vessel ‘Hendrik S’ after getting his fingers trapped in a hatch in heavy seas south of St. Govans, breaking several of them. The master of the vessel raised an emergency call to aid the transfer of the injured crewman.
Lifeboat to the rescue
To provide medical assistance for the injured crew member, Tenby’s relief RNLI all-weather lifeboat. The lifeboat with its volunteers was quick to report and made the best speed towards the sheltered bay at Barafundle.
The transfer was facilitated by the coxswain positioned the lifeboat alongside the 3,200 tonne cargo ship. The injured chief engineer, accompanied by the first mate, boarded the lifeboat for the 11-mile trip back to Tenby.
Distress call raised for the second time
Shortly afterwards, a distress call was raised for the second time by the captain of the vessel. He expressed fears for the safety of his vessel and crew due to extreme fatigue. His first mate was ashore with the injured chief engineer, having been taken ashore by the lifeboat earlier in the day for medical treatment.
The owners of the ship had failed to get transport for the first mate to return to the ship and due to the possible danger posed to the vessel by an extremely tired captain, it was decided to launch the lifeboat to avert a possible grounding of the 3,200 tonne cargo ship.
The lifeboat was launched to facilitate the return of both the first mate and chief engineer back to the cargo vessel.
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Source: Tenby Observer
