Sailor saved from sinking yacht after washing ashore

The yacht was yet another casualty of Storm Katie.

Oxwich Bay Hotel, where Simon Broadbent washed ashore and spent the night. Credit: © Copyright David Gearing and licensed for reuse under a Creative Commons Licence.

A 58-year-old sailor on a yachting holiday has described how he narrowly avoided tragedy by stepping off his sinking yacht, and onto dry land.

Simon Broadbent was moored in Oxwich Bay, a protected area on Wales’ southern coast, on Easter Sunday when he said strong winds caused his 36ft yacht Dankidau to come loose from its moorings.

Not long after, he told the South Wales Evening Post that he felt the boat slam into something.

“It was crash, bang, wallop,” he said. “It was very, very sudden. Within 10 seconds the boat was on its side. I only had time to grab five objects, including my passport and insulin.

“It was pitch black, and the weather was nasty.”

Broadbent sent out a Mayday distress call and the Coastguard advised him to stay on board until help had arrived.

Two lifeboats and a helicopter were dispatched to the scene around 1am, but, according to the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI), the boat, Dankidau, had washed ashore before they could reach it.

“Ten minutes later the casualty yacht was blown onto the beach at Oxwich,” a statement from the RNLI said.

In 40mph winds and heavy seas in the dark of night, Broadbent stepped from his sinking boat and onto dry land dressed in his pyjamas.

With the tide receding, the Coastguard was able to get a jeep down to the beach to meet Broadbent. And, as fortune would have it, the owner of the Oxwich Bay Hotel, situated on the very beach where Broadbent had washed ashore, put the stranded sailor up for the night free of charge.

Broadbent has managed to contact his family to let them know he is alright, and a salvage company was scheduled to assess the damage to the yacht. Broadbent hopes to continue on his holiday route from Bristol to Holyhead.

A spokesman for the RNLI, lifeboat deputy second coxswain James Bolter put a sobering spin on the event, saying: “This was one of the worst night’s weather of the year so far. We’re very happy the crew of the yacht is safe.

“Thankfully he called for help immediately, if the yacht had grounded anywhere other than the beach there could have been tragic consequences.”

Two RNLI crews respond to yacht taking on water