A lifesaving lifeboat crew on the Isle of Man were called out twice in a matter of days to help two vessels, both bound for Northern Ireland. The Peel branch of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution ( RNLI ) first sprang into action on the evening of Thursday (June 6) when a 9-metre river cruiser ran into engine difficulties off the coast. The vessel and its passengers had left Peel earlier in the afternoon bound for Strangford Lough in Northern Ireland.
During the emergency, the cruiser’s skipper was unable to pinpoint the exact location of the stricken vessel. Peel lifeboat assists Northern Irish cruiser 'dangerously adrift' in shipping lane Hospice to launch 'Social Gents' community group for bereaved men Time, route and location of the Red Arrows' display at Isle of Man TT 2024 Watch moving service held on Isle of Man to mark 80th anniversary of D-Day landings However, thanks to information from a passing yacht, rescuers aboard Peel’s Shannon class lifeboat, Frank and Brenda Winter, were able to make contact and located the vessel roughly 14 miles west of Peel. Peel’s RNLI volunteers were preparing for a training exercise when they initially received the call out.
The vessel had found itself ‘dangerously adrift' in a shipping lane before the Peel RNLI managed to tow the cruiser to safety. The crew then handed it over to an RNLI lifeboat from Newcastle, County Down, which assisted in the rescue and continued towing the cruiser to Strangford Lough. By 10pm, Peel l.