A YACHTSMAN who had veered off course when travelling from the Channel Islands was towed to safety by the Weymouth Lifeboat.

The station officer was called on Saturday morning to provide an initial response team to meet Weymouth Lifeboat at the waiting pontoon.

A spokesperson for the Wyke Coastguard team said: “The all weather lifeboat was sent to help a solo yachtsman who called for assistance after his engine failed and there was also a lack of wind.

“His journey from the Channel Islands with an intended destination of Poole had taken him 36 hours.

“The skipper was well but exhausted. The coastguard team assisted him by tying the yacht alongside before returning to the lifeboat station.”