BOATOWNERS have been branded as "irresponsible" after Minehead's Class D lifeboat was unable to launch after the slipway was blocked by parked cars. Lifeboat operations manager Kevin Escott said lives could easily have been lost after the crew lost valuable time when trying to respond to an emergency call. He said he believed the parked vehicles belonged to people carrying out repairs to a boat. "The irresponsible actions of the people blocking the slipway greatly hampered our launch and it was only good fortune that no-one was injured. "We rely on getting to sea in all conditions as quickly as possible," he said. Both lifeboats had been called out on Tuesday evening after a number of tourists got caught out by tide and wind conditions. Initially, two boys were thought to be in danger when sea and weather conditions changed and they were in danger of being swept out to sea in an inflatable. Fortunately they managed to swim ashore but abandoned their dingy. At the same time, three girls who had been drifting out to sea attempted to swim ashore towing their inflatable craft. The station's Atlantic 75 lifeboat picked up the girls and returned them safely to the lifeboat station. Shortly afterwards, the station's smaller D Class lifeboat was called to rescue two people who were in danger when their inflatable rubber ring drifted further out into the bay. The evening's events prompted Mr Escott to reiterate the dangers of using inflatables in the sea. He said: "The sudden change in sea and wind conditions caught these people out and I would urge people not to go to sea in these inflatable craft. They are only suitable for use in swimming pools." He said this year had seen a surge in the number of call-outs for the crew, with 26 incidents already recorded this year, matching the total number of calls received for the whole of last year. Tuesday's busy evening followed on from another call-out on Monday night when the Atlantic 75 lifeboat was called into action when a local speedboat got into difficulties in Blue Anchor Bay. The locally owned 18ft vessel had launched earlier in the day from a slipway on Blue Anchor Beach when it suffered an engine failure at around 6pm. The crew of three alerted Swansea Coastguard using a mobile phone and the station's Atlantic 75 Lifeboat with volunteer helmsman Paul Marsh in command was quickly at the scene. An offer was declined to tow the stricken boat to Watchet marina and a decision was made to recover it back to the slipway at Blue Anchor Beach. Although the sea state was slight, there was a considerable swell on the beach due to the high tide and members of Porlock Coastguard assisted in the recovery. Mr Marsh said the crew of the speedboat were well prepared and all were wearing lifejackets. "They had the foresight to contact the emergency services immediately," he said. He also praised members of the Porlock Coastguard team and said the lifeboat crew was extremely grateful for their assistance.
