OFFICERS at Portland Coastguard station have warned of the dangers of blocking the emergency radio channel.
The comments come after the international radio distress channel was noisily blocked when a person sat on a handset.
A Coastguard spokesman said: “If a vessel with a maritime emergency had tried to make a Mayday or Pan Pan broadcast during the period of this interference, it is highly likely that their call for help would not have been heard.
“All boat users should regularly check that the VHF radio is stored in such a way that the `press to talk` button cannot accidentally become activated.”
The comments came after Poole lifeboat was launched on Saturday afternoon after the VHF channel 16 was blocked by an open microphone which was then re-broadcasting the Jack FM radio station.
The vessel, a Fletcher speedboat, was located between Poole Harbour entrance and Bournemouth Pier.
Coastguards said that after realising what had happened it became clear that one of the boat’s occupants had been sitting on the radio.
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