A man overboard signal to the HM Coastguard resulted in an emergency call out for the Largs lifeboat this week.
Senior park ranger and lifeboat volunteer Michael ‘Orric’ Holcombe took the helm of Largs lifeboat for the first time on Wednesday, July 19.
Just two weeks after passing out as helm, Michael took charge of Largs RNLI’s Atlantic 85 inshore lifeboat in response to an alert by HM Coastguard.
The Coastguard had received the signal from Hunterston Channel and were able to identify the vessel involved by using their MMSI number - a number which uniquely identifies the equipment - however they had tried unsuccessfully to make contact by radio.
Michael said: "Once I started undertaking the tasks required for the shout my helm training kicked in.
"The training provided to the volunteer crew by the RNLI is very comprehensive and sets us up to feel confident when responding to incidents.
"Right from the start of the shout I felt supported by the rest of the crew. With the other three volunteer crew on the lifeboat being long-serving crew members, I knew I had a very knowledgeable and experienced team onboard."
Other vessels in the local area had been also been asked by the coastguard to attend and locate the vessel. As the lifeboat was arriving on the scene, a yacht had located the vessel and the alarm was deactivated.
The lifeboat attended to check all was well and it was established the alarm had been set off by accident.
Largs lifeboat then returned to the lifeboat station where it was cleaned, refuelled and made ready for service.
Michael said: "Although it was a false alarm it was amazing to see the equipment vessels can have on board to help themselves and raise the alarm.
"Although I had known about this equipment it was great to see it in action. It really does work and can assist in our rescue efforts.
"I would advise anyone taking to the water to make sure they are suitably equipped and give consideration to investing in devices to aid in their rescue should it be required.
"If you get into difficulty at sea or along the coast, or spot someone else in trouble, always dial 999 and ask for the coastguard."
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