A lifeboat crew was called to aid a yacht taking part in this year’s Shetland Races just minutes before it was due to set off across the North Sea.
The 39ft Norwegian yacht was at the start line of the second leg of the Lerwick to Bergen race on Sunday morning when it fouled its propeller in creel lines near the Bressay marina.
The five people on board called the coastguard for assistance and the Lerwick lifeboat was launched at 7.55am – just five minutes before the race was scheduled to start.
The crew attached a line to tow the stricken vessel across the harbour but its own crew was soon able to untangle the propeller and restore power to the engine.
After a slight delay, the yacht set sail once again to catch up with the other racers heading to Bergen.
Stephen Manson, coxswain of Lerwick lifeboat, said: ““It was unfortunate timing for this vessel to get caught in creel lines, just as all the racing yachts assembled this morning.
‘We hope they can make up time in the race’
“We were able to navigate across a busy harbour to reach them quickly but thankfully the crew of the yacht were able to free the fouled rope themselves.
“We hope they can make up time in the race and we hope all the vessels have a safe passage across the North Sea back to Bergen.”
The call-out is believed to be the 900th for Lerwick lifeboat since the first RNLI lifeboat took up service in Lerwick Harbour in 1930.
