Author: James Baggott

A quick-thinking pair of sailors plucked three people out of the water after their boat sank in The Solent on Saturday. The duo from Stokes Bay Sailing Club were passing in their two-man dinghy when they spotted the speed boat sinking off Gilkicker, Stokes Bay. Gosport &...

Rescuers came to the aid of a sinking motor boat after its crew issued a mayday distress call on Good Friday. The 7.5-metre vessel, which had two adults and a baby on board, had suffered engine failure and was taking on water. Gosport & Fareham Inshore Rescue...

Gosport independent lifeboat launched to a mayday distress call on Sunday afternoon after a yacht ran aground. The 40ft Beneteau, which had eight people on board, had struck Hamilton Bank, just outside Portsmouth Harbour and issued the mayday call on VHF radio at 1620. Gosport & Fareham...

Rescuers were called to assist a vessel which had got into trouble after mooring up alongside a Portsmouth pier. Gosport & Fareham Inshore Rescue Service (GAFIRS) was paged by UK Coastguard at 1740 to reports of a vessel in distress at Clarence Pier. The skipper of the...

Two dedicated life-saving volunteers have been recognised for decades of service at an independent lifeboat station. At Gosport & Fareham Inshore Rescue Service’s (GAFIRS) annual general meeting on Friday (March 24), two outgoing committee members were awarded honourary lifetime membership in thanks for their years of...

Rescuers were launched by UK Coastguard on Tuesday lunchtime to assist a 10-metre cabin cruiser dangerously adrift near Portsmouth. The pleasure craft, which had four people on board, had suffered engine failure near Horse Sand Fort and was drifting in the main shipping channel. Gosport & Fareham...

Gosport & Fareham Inshore Rescue Service's two lifeboats were called into action on Monday evening twice by UK Coastguard. The volunteer crews were paged by the Coastguard at around 2230 to assist with a search for a missing person with both the service’s lifeboat and inshore...

A small fishing boat that was drifting towards the main shipping channel on the approaches to Portsmouth Harbour was pulled to safety by rescuers on Monday night. The 17ft fishing boat, which had three men on board, had lost engine power and was unable to deploy...

In a pitch black, smoke-filled tunnel, Gosport & Fareham Inshore Rescue Service’s volunteer crew learned how to use a vital piece of lifesaving equipment this weekend. Thanks to a specially modified truck from Alpha Training Safety Solutions, GAFIRS’ crew clambered into tight spaces – like those...