Tobermory lifeboat rescued 16 people on board a 70ft training yacht yesterday when she became stuck in lobster creel ropes off the south coast of Iona, Scotland.

The volunteer lifeboat crew made a 100-mile round trip to rescue the yacht, which was stranded in rough seas. When they arrived at the scene, the crew found the Netherlands Navy’s newly commissioned warship Friesland was already attempting to help the yacht but was struggling in the two-metre swell.

“When we arrived on scene we were confronted not only with very challenging conditions with a two metre swell but we were also very aware that there were young people on board the sail training vessel in rough seas,” said deputy second coxswain Andrew McHaffie. “This was a long rescue but with a very successful outcome. We’d like to thank the crew of the Dutch warship Friesland for their assistance.”

The training yacht was towed back to Tobermory by the RNLI after the crew had circumnavigated the Isles of Mull and spent over 10 hours at sea.

Watch a video of the rescue below: