At 00:01 on Sunday 17th October 2021, the St Peter Port Inshore lifeboat (ILB) “Elizabeth & Margaret Milligan” was launched by Guernsey Coastguard, to the assistance of the 21ft open speed boat “Apache” that had left St Peter Port harbour the previous evening and had become lost.

The St Peter Port ILB arrived on scene approximately 1nm South-East of St Martins Point at 00:21 where they discovered the casualty vessel with two occupants on board who were both wearing wet clothing and suffering from the cold.

The lifeboat escorted “Apache” back to St Peter Port, where it was met by Coastguard and Harbour officers at 00:35 who then handed both casualties over to the St John’s Ambulance & Rescue Service for assessment.

The St Peter Port ILB returned to station at 00:36.

A Coastguard officer said “This incident was largely due to the crew taking their vessel to sea, in the dark after consuming alcohol throughout the day. The vessel was not appropriately equipped for returning to Jersey at night and had very limited safety equipment onboard”.

The officer re-iterated the Harbour Master’s “three P’s message” in that, all mariners should

• Prepare their vessel and themselves for the intended trip to be undertaken
• Provide the correct equipment onboard and
• Perform responsibly on the water