A SAILOR was taken to hospital after his boat drifted into shipping lanes in the River Mersey.
RNLI New Brighton Lifeboat were called at 11.28am on Monday, December 2 following reports a stricken sailing boat had drifted into shipping lanes in the Mersey.
Volunteer crews then received a report that there was a casualty on board the boat.
One lifeboat was launched and reached the boat with two volunteer crew members on board to assist the sailor.
A crew member provided first aid while another navigated the boat out of the shipping lanes and into Liverpool marina.
Staff from the marina and coastguard officers then helped berth the boat.
The sailor was then passed on to North West Ambulance Service for treatment.
New Brighton, Lifeboat Operations Manager Ian Thornton said: "One of our crew initially spotted the boat which appeared in distress and the alarm was raised with the Coastguard who tasked the RNLI lifeboat to assist.
"This was a particularly complex rescue as the sailboat was only a small vessel resulting in a confined space to work and treat the injured casualty whilst also trying to navigate the boat out of the shipping lanes."
To support the RNLI this Christmas visit RNLI.org/ThePerfectStorm to donate
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