18th July 2017. NCI Polruan provided crucial assistance when Fowey RNLI launched a dangerous rescue of two people who had got into trouble after their boat beached at Combe Beach.

The Coastwatch volunteers at Polruan raised the alarm when they spotted a boat with engine trouble close to the rocks between St Catherine's Castle and Combe Beach shortly before 5pm today. A spokesman for Fowey RNLI said: "They (NCI Polruan) alerted the Fowey Harbour office, who quickly dispatched a harbour dory to investigate, guided onto the site by Polruan NCI. When the boat was located there were two people on the rocks and the situation was unsafe for the harbour dory to affect a rescue. So, at 4.50pm, the RNLI was called and Fowey in-shore D-Class Lifeboat Olive Two was requested."

The boat veered down to the casualty and conducted aseries of manoeuvres which required them to drop anchor and then head back towards the rocks under power, allowing a taut anchor rope and an easier escape from the rocks should they too become grounded.

The spokesman continued: "Alan Harris then went ashore in a very rocky area with a surging easterly swell lifting and dropping the boats. He assisted the two stranded people back into their boat, climbed in himself and was towed out by Olive Two. This was a dangerous rescue due to the circumstances and the casualty was then towed back safely into the harbour.".

As well as alerting the RNLI to the emergency with the boat, NCI Polruan volunteers guided the lifeboat onto station and continued to monitor the situation until the casualties were returned safely to the harbour.

The photograph, courtesy of Cornwall Life, shows the Fowey ILB being launched.