A WALMER lifeboat crew faced strong winds and rough seas early on Sunday morning to rescue two yachtsmen adrift on the Goodwins.

The 26-ft craft called Tahi Tahi was floundering in the bad weather and lost on the notorious sandbank off Deal. "It was dark and the two men on board were shocked and frightened," said Denis Brophy, lifeboat station secretary.

RNLI helmsman Andrew Coe, together with crew members Phillip Brenchley and Adam Cowell, left the station at 2am after receiving a call from the Coastguard Station. The yacht was on its way from Belgium to Hayling Island and ran aground on the Goodwin Sands in winds measuring 35 knots.

Mr Brophy said: "Our crew had difficulty finding them in the swell and searched for half an hour. As they were going up on the waves, the yacht was going down. One of the crew saw a torch flashing and by the time we found the yacht it had been blown away from the Sands."

The Walmer men had to wait about 10 minutes for a lull in the waves for Mr Cowell to go aboard the Tahi Tahi. Mr Brophy added: "It was the worst weather the crew has seen for a long time and the yacht had no navigation lights.

"One of the men on board did not have much protective clothing on and the yacht had a broken rudder, had lost it tiller and electrical power. It was a good rescue and the first time Mr Cowell had been in that sort of weather."

He praised the work of the three crewmen, especially the helmsman for his "excellent seaman's skills".