A pensioner suffering from the cold was among 10 passengers and two crew aboard a stranded pleasure boat rescued off Herne Bay on Sunday afternoon.

They were on the 7-metre Bay Flyer which broke down between the Kentish Flats and the Shivering Sands Towers shortly before 6pm

Fortunately Whitstable Lifeboat was already at sea on an exercise when Thames Coastguard called the crew for assistance.

Helmsman Craig Sidders said “We took the Bay Flyer under tow back towards Herne Bay and were a mile past the wind farm when we were told by the Bay Flyer that passengers and one 80-year old gentleman in particular where feeling the cold”.

“We returned alongside the casualty vessel and gave first aid and wrapped the gentleman in a thermal blanket. We also gave blankets to some of the other passengers and then resumed the tow to Herne Bay where we had requested an ambulance to meet us”.

"We were met by the Herne Bay Coastguard and the two ambulance teams who assisted in getting everybody off the Bay Flyer and onto the harbour ramp”.

Paramedic Patrick Kember who checked over the casualties helped by emergency care support worker Graham Furlonger and Ryan Truelove, a volunteer community responder, said “All the passengers were cold but there was concern for the older man and, given his age and medical history, we got him into the ambulance, checked over and warmed up”

“The others were young and healthy and, in these circumstances, if casualties have got cold slowly it is best to warm them up slowly which we did, gave them some advice and sent them on their way happy”.

Speaking afterwards, Matt Stickells who had skippered the Bay Flyer on behalf of its owner Bay-Tours said “The engine cut out after we hit a wave between the wind farm and the shivering Sands Towers so I put in a call to Thames Coastguard.

"We got it running but it cut out again so all we could do was put our emergency procedures into place, make sure everyone was safe and sit and wait. Our thanks go to the lifeboat, coastguard and ambulance crews for their help.”