A capsized sailing dinghy on Saturday (September 6) gave Teignmouth Lifeboat’s new crew member Lee Smith an opportunity to put his training into action as he responded to his first shout.

Teignmouth Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) received a call from Solent Coastuard at 7.48pm on Saturday night (September 6) after a small sailing dinghy capsized in the River Teign leaving two people in the water.

Volunteer crew, from Teignmouth Lifeboat Station, including trainee crew member Lee Smith, launched swiftly to the location west of the station up the River Teign.

On arrival, Teignmouth RNLI crew found another dinghy already on scene with one if its crew members in the water trying to help the stricken vessel.

The volunteer crew from Teignmouth RNLI quickly helped to recover everyone from the water.

The casualties told the lifeboat crew that the mast of the capsized dinghy had become stuck in the mud. So, Teignmouth lifeboat crew towed the capsized vessel free and then returned both casualties and the sailing dinghy back to Coombe Cellars at Combeinteignhead.

‘Taking part in my first shout was a great milestone in my training,’ Lee reflected. ‘Last night really highlighted the importance of teamwork on the water, and I’m looking forward to building on this experience as I continue my training, I want to thank everyone at the station for their help in getting to this point.’

Teignmouth RNLI lifeboat operations manager Andy Lilburn extended his congratulations to Lee on a successful first shout. ‘It’s a big milestone for every crew member. He performed really well during the shout, and we look forward to seeing him progress further as he continues his training. It’s encouraging for the whole team to see new crew members growing in confidence and capability with each call-out.’