Two men were rescued by lifeboat crews after their yacht ran aground in the River Brue estuary in Burnham-On-Sea on Sunday afternoon (July 12th).
The 22ft sailing yacht, called PipaLotta, got into difficulty when it lost power while travelling from Combwich to Portishead at 4.50pm.
Highbridge yachtsman Ian Robathan and stepson Edward alerted Coastguards and Burnham RNLI launched two boats to help them.
Ian told Burnham-On-Sea.com: “We were taking the boat from its moorings at Combwich to Portishead when just as we got towards Burnham we had a problem with the engine.”
“I know Burnham is quite awkward to navigate but I also know the Yacht Club here has good pontoons. But we got caught in the swell and the boat went a little off course and left us in the shallow water. I tried to get it back on course but with the engine virtually gone and the tide falling we were just drifting.”
“It’s a heavy boat – the RNLI tried their best to get it off the mud and made several attempts but she was stuck. We were grateful to the RNLI and Coastguard for their help.”
The two were taken to the town’s jetty while the yacht was left to be refloated at the next high tide.
Highbridge yachtsman Ian Robathan being helped onto the lifeboat by the crew
The two lifeboats had tried to pull the stranded yacht off the river bank
Ian and Edward walk from the RNLI lifeboat after their rescue on Sunday
