THREE members of Medway Yacht Club were rescued when their vessel was hit by a squall and sank in the Medway off Kingsnorth, near Rochester.

The incident happened at around 10.30am on Saturday as the yacht, Lunar, was tacking during a race. An eyewitness on another vessel, who preferred not to be named, said: “A big gust of wind came in and knocked the vessel down.

“It took her about a minute to sink. The three people on board were equipped with all the necessary life-saving and buoyancy aids and our club rescue boat was nearby.

“The crew was picked out of the water within two minutes and taken back to the clubhouse.”

Divers from the tug Nipper Shore went down to attach recovery equipment to the yacht at low tide, around 4.30am on Sunday.

By mid-morning she had been salvaged and was back alongside at Medway Yacht Club’s mooring at Lower Upnor.

“She’s completely unharmed and will be out racing again next weekend,” said a club spokesman.