Lifeboats launched to help 'catastrophically damaged' fishing boat at 'German Charlies'

Redcar RNLI was sent to help with the incident off South Gare
-Credit: (Image: RNLI/Andrew Watson)


Two lifeboats were launched after a fishing boat suffered "catastrophic" damage and started sinking close to South Gare in Redcar.

The lifesaving crews at Redcar RNLI were called at 9.24am on Thursday to the West Bay area known as "German Charlies" close to South Gare. An RNLI spokesperson said fishing gear had become caught in the boat's propeller which caused it to lose power.

"It's then drifted on to the rocks and started taking in water," he said. "It was catastrophically damaged and was getting flooded."

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The two lifeboats, the D-Class and the Atlantic, headed out to the area. A member of the D-Class crew managed to rescue the fisherman from the stricken vessel.

The spokesman said he believes the tide came in later, carrying the boat off the rocks, and it has now sank. The fisherman did not require any treatment and he was dropped off at South Gare. The crews had returned to the station by 10.30am.

German Charlies is the name for the three slag banks close to the breakwater off South Gare which are exposed partly during low tides. The name was given a German ship ran aground on them in the First World War.

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