Two men are lucky to be alive after their boat suddenly sank off Weymouth.

The pair were in the sea for around two hours before the crew on a passing yacht heard their cries for help.

They ended up being airlifted to hospital.

The dramatic sea drama happened in Weymouth Bay this morning.

It has emerged the pair, aged in their 60s, desperately clung onto a fuel tank to keep them afloat.

It is understood they had purchased a small day fishing boat recently.

Disaster struck this morning after the pair left Weymouth Harbour about 9am for a day's fishing.

For reasons unknown, the boat capsized quickly and sank in the middle of Weymouth Bay.

The two men had no time to call for help and were thrown into the sea.

One of the men was wearing a lifejacket but the other man did not have time to put his on as the boat took on water.

Rescuers said the pair clung onto the boat's fuel tank as a buoyancy aid. One of the men suffered minor chemical burns from the can as a result of clinging to it.

They were eventually seen by a yacht who issued a Mayday alert. Their position was 2.5 nautical miles east of Weymouth Harbour. 

The two men, who were suffering from hypothermia, were recovered from the water with the help of a local scallop dive RIB which had responded to the Mayday call.

The yacht's crew included a doctor who was able to give initial medical treatment.

Weymouth's all weather and inshore lifeboats were launched and the Coastguard search and rescue helicopter, which was training in the Poole area was scrambled - it was on scene in five minutes.

They were taken aboard the lifeboats before being winched up to the helicopter and taken to Dorset County Hospital.

Wyke Coastguard Rescue Team met the helicopter at the landing site in Dorchester.

The pair were very shaken from their ordeal and suffering from the effects of the cold but appeared to be otherwise okay.

It is fortunate that the incident happened when it did - the sea is at its warmest at this time of year, rescuers say. The men may not have survived for so long in the water if it had happened in the colder months.

An RNLI spokesman said it understood the pair were in the water for two hours before they were picked up.

He said: "Two males were recovered and given first aid before they were airlifted to hospital."

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency said it was alerted to the incident just before 11:30am.

A spokesman said: "Two men who had been fishing on their boat both entered the water when their boat sank.

"The Weymouth all-weather and inshore lifeboats and the Coastguard search and rescue helicopter attended.

"The casualties were both suffering from shock and hypothermia. The decision was made to take them via helicopter to hopsital in Dorchester."

Wyke Coastguard said the team were tasked to prepare the landing site at Dorchester for the arrival of the helicopter.

A spokesman said: "Two male casualties had been recovered from the water in Weymouth Bay after the small fishing boat they were in capsized. They had been in the water for some two hours before a passing yacht saw them and raised the alarm.

"Both casualties were in shock so information gathered was sketchy. One was wearing a lifejacket, the other did not have time to put his on but managed to cling to a fuel tank sustaining chemical burns during his ordeal."