At approximately 0948 hours on Sunday 18 January 2026, Guernsey Coastguard received a VHF radio call from a local fishing vessel reporting that it was assisting another local fishing vessel with a fouled propeller in the area of Saint Martin’s Point. The assisting vessel advised that it was unable to tow and that the casualty vessel was close to rocks on a falling tide. Immediate assistance was requested.

One crew member from the casualty vessel had been taken aboard the assisting vessel; however, one crew member remained on board the stranded vessel.

At 0950 hours, the Coastguard requested the immediate launch of the St Peter Port Lifeboat. At the same time, broadcasts were made requesting assistance from any suitable vessels in the area. The Coastguard was grateful for the offers of assistance received from other vessels.

The Coastguard maintained continuous communications with the assisting vessel to ensure the situation did not deteriorate further.

The St Peter Port Lifeboat departed at 1004 hours and arrived on scene at 1012 hours. Due to the casualty vessel’s position among rocks, the lifeboat deployed its small rescue craft, enabling crew to access the vessel and safely cut it free from the gear fouling its propeller. The vessel was then moved into safer water, where a tow line was established.

The lifeboat subsequently towed the vessel to St Peter Port, arriving safely at 1052 hours.

Duty SAR Mission Coordinator Simon Granger commented: “This incident was quickly and safely resolved with no injuries and no damage to vessels, thanks to the assistance of another local fishing vessel and the fast response of the lifeboat.”

Guernsey Coastguard assisted in coordinated a multi‑agency rescue last night, following reports of a young person who had fallen from height at the Cows Horn on Guernsey’s east coast.

At 8:45p.m an emergency call was received by the Joint Emergency Services Control Centre (JESCC), reporting that an individual had fallen down the cliff face and required urgent assistance. JESCC immediately initiated a coordinated response involving Guernsey Coastguard, Guernsey Police, St John Emergency Ambulance Service, and both, the RNLI’s all‑weather (ALB) and inshore (ILB) lifeboats.

Guernsey Police officers were first to reach the casualty, locating him at the bottom of the cliff and provided initial assessment and first aid at the scene.

The RNLI ILB arrived on scene at 9:08p.m, followed shortly thereafter by the RNLI ALB at 9:10p.m. Due to the challenging and hazardous terrain, paramedics from St John Ambulance were transported to the casualty via lifeboat where they provided enhanced medical care.

After stabilisation and preparation for extraction, the casualty was transferred, to the ALB for onward transport to St Peter Port arriving there at 10:15p.m where they were landed ashore into a St John Ambulance for onward transport to the Princess Elizabeth hospital.

At approximately 0040 hours on Sunday 26 October, Guernsey Coastguard received an emergency beacon alert indicating a vessel in distress north of Guernsey. This was swiftly followed by a call from Joburg Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC), reporting that a 60-foot trimaran participating in an organised race had capsized with two people on board approximately 3.5 miles northwest of Guernsey.
Guernsey Coastguard immediately contacted another yacht in the vicinity, also participating in the race, which confirmed witnessing the capsize. However, due to adverse conditions, the vessel was unable to approach or render assistance.
At 0051 hours, Guernsey Coastguard paged the St Peter Port Lifeboat for immediate launch and coordinated with Joburg MRCC, which dispatched a French rescue helicopter to the scene.
Further updates confirmed that the two sailors aboard the trimaran were uninjured and remained with the vessel. The French helicopter arrived at approximately 0130 hours, followed shortly by the St Peter Port Lifeboat. The two sailors were winched aboard the helicopter and transported to France for precautionary medical checks.
The lifeboat remained on scene to monitor the drift of the upturned vessel before returning to St Peter Port at 0230 hours. Race officials are currently arranging for the recovery of the trimaran and are tracking its drift along the west coast.
Duty SAR Mission Coordinator Simon Granger commented: “This was an organised race and the swift rescue of the two sailors is testament to the onboard safety equipment alerting the emergency services to the incident, along with the rapid response of the RNLI and French Rescue Helicopter. The joint coordination between Joburg MRCC and Guernsey Coastguard ensured a successful outcome.”

Update: Following the earlier incident involving a capsized yacht, which resulted in the successful airlift rescue of two individuals in the early hours of this morning, the vessel has now washed ashore as predicted by drift modelling.
The yacht has come to rest at the southern end of Perelle Bay, near the Shingle Bank.
Guernsey Coastguard is currently coordinating with the Joint Emergency Control Centre, States Works, and the race directors in France to ensure the safe removal of the vessel from the shoreline.
At this time, the pollution risk has been assessed as minimal. The situation continues to be closely monitored.
Members of the public are kindly requested to stay clear of the vessel, particularly as the tide drops, to allow recovery teams to work safely and efficiently.