Lone rower plucked to safety after dramatic rescue by Thurso lifeboat team

A lone rower was said to be lucky to be alive after a dramatic rescue by the crew of the Thurso RNLI lifeboat – The Taylors – which took around nine hours to complete.

The rower had been at sea for two days while attempting to sail from Durness to Scrabster in a 24-foot Atlantic offshore vessel which was blown off course by the wind. The vessel was believed to be home-built with no engine or lights.

Press officer for Thurso RNLI Ron Gunn said: "There is no doubt about it, they saved his life. The boat was battleship grey, the crew could not see it in the water. He was very lucky he was not struck by passing fishing boats – he was out in the dark. He would have just kept floating out to sea north towards Iceland I imagine – it was a good rescue."

The Taylors was launched at 10.47am yesterday morning (Thursday) after reports were received about a lone rower in difficulty.

Commenting on the rower's planned voyage, Mr Gunn said: "He anticipated it would take about a day which was a bit ambitious – he started to drift out from the shore. He decided to have a rest – when he woke up he was even further out. I think he was about 48 hours in the boat. He ended up 38 miles out into the Atlantic, north west of the mainland."

Fortunately the man was able to contact his family via a satellite phone when he realised he was in difficulty and was unable to row back towards shore. His family in turn alerted the coastguard.

The Taylors was launched immediately and it took the crew around two hours to locate the boat as it was so far out and the sea was heavy with around a four metre swell.

Mr Gunn explained that the occupant initially decided to stay on the vessel and the lifeboat team thought they would try to tow him back but it was quickly considered too dangerous and the crew were frightened the small boat would be pulled underwater.

For the safety of the rower the inflatable Y boat was launched with two crew members but it struggled to stay afloat. "It was pretty rough – at one stage a wave lifted it right out of the water," said Mr Gunn. "They managed to get him in the Y boat and transfer him into the lifeboat."

The rescued vessel was strapped to the lifeboat and taken back to Scrabster, arriving in the harbour around 8.10pm. The rower was reunited with his waiting family and said to be in good spirits.

Mr Gunn added that the local coastguard team spoke to the rescued man, who is believed to be from London, as they were a bit concerned about the lack of equipment on his boat. The small vessel had a couple of hatches allowing access under deck where the rower could take shelter.

The Taylors was cleaned and refuelled ready for service after returning to Scrabster.

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