'Sickening' late night RNLI hoax call uses up more than 100 coastguard volunteers and two helicopters
More than 100 coastguard volunteers and two helicopters were deployed after a late night 'mayday call' which turned out to be a hoax. Six boats from Weston, Burnham-on-Sea and South Wales responded to the call which came in on Monday 3 August. Also part of the rescue was the coastguard helicopter and a navy Wildcat helicopter.
A member of the public told emergency services that three people were on a sinking boat six miles south of Penarth. It later turned out to be a prank.
Volunteers from Weston's Lifeboat Station did not return to their homes until past midnight after responding to what they thought was an emergency. The team then had to wake at 6am to retrieve one of their boats, which had to be moored due to tidal levels, before starting their day jobs.
Weston Lifeboat Station is a charity which relies on donations and volunteers who work for free.
Weston Lifeboat's Operations Manage, Mike Buckland, said: "It's incredibly frustrating, particularly at the moment when the charity's fundraisers are extremely limited.
"Every penny really does count and so to waste money on fuel etc is very frustrating."