Jim Roberts on Saving Lives at Sea

If you are old enough to remember the television series ‘Howard’s Way’, you may remember the yacht that featured in the television show called the ‘Barracuda of Tarrant’ which was chartered for the program.

It was 5 o’clock in the morning that two of us Coastguards found ourselves out on the edge of Bembridge Ledge, known as the ‘Sharpers’ after the owner of the ‘Barracuda of Tarrant’ on a return trip across the English Channel had mistaken the buoys that marked Bembridge Ledge and he turned to go up Spit Head at the West Princessa buoy instead of the Bembridge Ledge buoy.

The consequence of which the yacht ran aground on the Ledge and unfortunately had a hole in her hull. Bembridge Lifeboat stood by as the tide rose and Lifeboat Coxswain Martin Woodward who was also the local salvage expert had attached salvage buoyage bags to the vessel. However, the yacht sank on being towed clear of the Ledge.

At that time, I was sitting in the Coastguard mobile at the Lifeboat Station with the owner of the vessel who started to shed a tear or two as he saw his yacht sink under the water and disappear out of sight. Luckily the yacht was re-floated following the efforts of all on the scene and slowly but carefully towed into Bembridge Harbour for repairs.

The best part of this story was it did sail away a few weeks later.