Lifeboat completes first rescue

The Tenby lifeboat crew are still using the Tamar for training

The crew of a yacht that was sinking off the Gower coast are the first to be saved by Tenby's new £2m lifeboat.

The Tamar, the first of its kind in the UK, is not yet officially operational but was called upon after a Mayday near Burry Port on Saturday.

The yacht was taking on water and rescuers needed to be at the scene as quickly as possible.

A spokesman for Tenby RNLI said the Tamar was 10 knots faster than Tenby's old Tyne class lifeboat.

The lifeboat crew helped pump out the 30ft yacht and then towed it and its crew of four 14 miles back to Tenby harbour.

It's a heck of a lot faster Bob James, training coordinator

Training coordinator for Tenby lifeboat, Bob James, said the crew were still using the Tamar for training exercises.

"The boat was taking on water and in danger of sinking so we decided to use the fastest boat available to us which was the Tamar," he explained.

"It was quite a pleasant day so we did not get the benefit of all the differences (between the old and new boat) just the speed. It's a heck of a lot faster."

The crew of the yacht were unharmed.

Tenby was chosen as the first location in the UK for the new design of boat as it was having a new station and the slipway could be designed to accommodate the larger vessel.