Floating bridge: Crew member injured in engine room

Fire, ambulance and paramedic teams helped in the rescue operation

A crew member has been injured on board the Isle of Wight's troubled chain ferry.

Isle of Wight Council said the 37-year-old man was hurt while investigating an issue in the engine room.

The man was airlifted to hospital after being removed from the vessel by fire and coastguard crews. His condition is not yet known.

The chain ferry has suffered a number of technical faults and periods out-of-service since entering service in 2017.

Coastguard teams from Ventor and Bembridge assisted with the operation to lift the man from the engine room with rope gear shortly after 13:00 BST.

The ferry is likely to remain out of service until Thursday lunchtime, the council said.

Floating bridge timeline:

• 13 May - Vessel launched

• 14 May - Broke down

• 15 May - Service suspended by MCA

• 7 June - Ran aground

• 9 June - Ran aground for a second time

• 9 June - Council said it had cleared "silt build-up that caused the floating bridge to ground"

• 10 June - Ran aground a third time

• 13 June to 3 July - Taken out of service at low tide

• 30 June - Broke down due to electrical fault

• 21 July - Withdrawn from service at night due to noise levels

• 4 September - Withdrawn from service indefinitely

• 11 December - Service resumed as part of extended trial

• 2 February - Broken prow chain