They are doing it every week in most popular sailing grounds of the world, but the rescue of lone sailor John Orme-Dawson whose boat hit rocks in thick fog off Golden Cap on the Dorset coast in the UK was probably the most hazardous carried out by local rescuers this summer, say officials.
Press officer Richard Horobin said: "There is no doubt that the rescue in June of John Orme-Dawson from the rocks under Golden Cap was the most dramatic and potentially dangerous of the summer.
"At the time, the Lyme Regis RNLI lifeboat helmsman, Tim Edwards, said: 'It was a very difficult rescue in thick fog with darkness falling.
"Because of the rocks we could not get close enough to take Mr Orme-Dawson off the yacht and on to the lifeboat.
"Instead we put two crew ashore and they managed to get to the yacht.
"We helped the yachtsman ashore and he was later winched to safety by the coastguard helicopter."
It was one of 19 emergencies dealt with by the crew of the Pearl of Dorset between June and August, according to latest figures issued by the UK's Royal National Lifesaving Institution (RNLI).
RNLI lifeguards in the south west dealt with 7,693 incidents over June, July and August 2009 - an increase of more than 600 compared to last season (7,062 in 2008). And the RNLI's 35 lifeboat stations in the south west*** launched 704 times over the same summer period.
The RNLI says the figures indicate that the services of both the charity's lifeguards, and volunteer lifeboat crews continue to be in demand over the busy summer period despite research showing that awareness of beach safety has increased by 21 per cent since 2008.
Mr Horobin added that the lifeboat had quite a few calls to broken down pleasure boats and were reissuing their advice to boat users to go prepared with plenty of fuel.
"We also advise them to inform others where they are going, to take a means of calling for help, wear a lifejacket, of course, and to check conditions before heading out," he said.
Watch some of the activities of RNLI volunteers in the video below
by Chris Carson, Bridport News/Sail-World Cruising
