Elderly man rescued from boat after being at sea for 45 days

An elderly solo sailor was rescued from a vessel after it ran aground in the north-east of England. The man told emergency services that he had been at sea for 45 days. Armed police and an Army bomb disposal team were called to King Edward's Bay in Tynemouth on Wednesday evening after concerns were raised about items found aboard the sailing boat.

The man, who was the only person onboard, was helped off by a lifeboat volunteer after two RNLI crews were called to the scene following reports of a vessel drifting dangerously close to rocks at about 8pm. James Waters of the RNLI said they managed to get one crew member aboard the stricken vessel, who helped the sailor on to the lifeboat as it ran aground at the south end of the bay, where it remained anchored on Thursday morning.

The RNLI said: "A crew member from Tynemouth ILB was placed aboard the vessel to carry out an assessment.

"One person was found on board, who had reportedly been at sea for 45 days and was in need of medical assistance.

"With the vessel taking on water and pitching erratically with the sea conditions, the decision was made to extract the casualty from the vessel.

"Lifeboat crew cut away the guard rails for easier access and transferred the casualty on to the ILB."

Mr Waters said: "Today's incident highlights the close working relationship between RNLI lifeboat crews and our partner agencies.

"Thanks to the swift response and team work between Tynemouth and Cullercoats lifeboats, Coastguard teams and the ambulance service, the casualty was brought safely ashore and received the medical attention they needed."

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency said on Thursday: "At 7.56pm last night, HM Coastguard received reports of a sailing vessel with one person on board drifting towards rocks at King Edward's Bay, Tynemouth.

"Blyth Coastguard Rescue Team, Tynemouth Volunteer Life Brigade and RNLI lifeboats from Cullercoats and Tynemouth were sent.

"A person was rescued from the vessel by lifeboat and handed over to North East Ambulance Service.

"The grounded vessel has been secured."

A Ministry of Defence spokesperson said: "We can confirm an Army Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) team responded to the King Edward's Bay area of Tynemouth at the police's request where black powder was returned to EOD barracks."