Motor yacht rescued by RNLI in 11-hour operation

Two adults and three children who were onboard the yacht were suffering from seasickness

A lifeboat crew in Devon was tasked with an 11-hour call-out over the bank holiday weekend after a motor yacht got into difficulty.

The Exmouth all-weather lifeboat was launched at about 12:42 BST on Sunday after the coastguard received a distress call from a vessel 26 miles (41 km) east of Berry Head.

Exmouth RNLI said six crew members tackled "challenging" sea conditions to reach the vessel.

The occupants of the yacht were experiencing seasickness and were eventually towed for more than five hours to the nearest point of safety in Torquay.

It took more than five hours to tow the yacht to safety in Torquay

Exmouth RNLI said: "The sea conditions were challenging, with three-metre (10ft) swells, and therefore the passage took 75 minutes.

"Upon arrival, our volunteer crew assessed the situation and established that the vessel's automatic fire suppression system had triggered and was preventing the engines from operating.

"Given the challenging conditions, and the vessel's occupants of two adults and three children who were suffering seasickness, the coxswain decided that towing the vessel to the nearest point of safety was the most appropriate course of action."

Exmouth RNLI said: "Upon finally arriving, the vessel was safely secured alongside and our crew then made the journey back to Exmouth to refuel and prepare the lifeboat again for service.

"The very tired volunteers finally left the lifeboat station and headed for their beds 11 hours after the first pager."