A LIFESAVING device led coastguards to track down a man who fell unconscious at sea. 

A call was made just after 2:30pm yesterday to reports that a sailor had activated his Personal Locator Beacon (PLB) 'quite a way offshore' South East of Portland Bill, when he realised he was falling ill. 

A coastguard helicopter was scrambled to locate the man, homing in on the signal from the beacon.

The Weymouth RNLI all-weather lifeboat launched at 3pm to assist the coastguard team in finding the sailor, who was found unconscious aboard a 20-foot sailing yacht. 

He was the only person on board the boat, which was travelling from Portland to Portsmouth. 

The coastguard helicopter airlifted the man to Dorchester A&E, and the yacht was towed back to Weymouth Harbour by the lifeboat. 

The PLB was registered with the UK Coastguard which had his next of kin details readily available.

The coastguard contacted the sailor’s wife.

A spokesman for Weymouth and Portland Coastguard Agency said: "The coastguard received a distress alert from a PLB which was tracked to a yacht on a passage to Portsmouth. 

"The casualty was taken to hospital where he then recovered.

"The man's family have been informed and they will recover the boat."

Aimee Phillimore for the UK Coastguard said: “This is a great example of how a personal locator beacon, when properly used and registered, can save a person’s life.  

"This solo sailor ensured that, should he get into difficulty whilst out at sea, he had the right equipment to give him the best chance of being located and rescued.

“If you fall overboard, your boat is suddenly lost or you are taken ill whilst solo sailing, you’ll need to raise an alarm and ensure that you can be located.

"A device such as a personal locator beacon (PLB) or a man overboard (MOB) device will assist in your rescue. You will need to choose a device that is best for your type of water activity.

"Your local chandler can advise you." 

Make sure that, if you decide upon a PLB, it is registered with the UK Coastguard.