WATCHET Coastguards were called out twice on Sunday to help stricken sailors battle with the tide.

The first call came just before 3pm when a yacht grounded on sand and mud after being unable to reach Watchet Harbour before the tide went out.

The 30ft ketch Sarah Noel had been part of a 14-strong flotilla of boats from Lydney Boat Club which had set off earlier in the day from Cardiff.

Delays meant the group failed to reach the harbour at high tide and the boats were forced to anchor offshore, but the Sarah Noel's anchor did not hold and she drifted in to shore.

Coastguards helped the skipper lower two anchors to hold the yacht fast as she was refloated on the incoming time.

Coastguard Simon Bale boarded the yacht to help the inexperienced crew motor back to deeper water, where Minehead's Atlantic 75 lifeboat waited offshore on standby.

The second incident saw coastguards called out just before 11pm following reports of an overdue sailing dinghy.

The 15ft Comet Trio had been becalmed and left drifting, but the two experienced sailors onboard had been unable to give their precise location due to a poor mobile telephone signal.

As well as coastguards, the RNLI lifeboat from Minehead and a local rigid inflatable boat the Christina searched for the dinghy, which was quickly located and towed back to Watchet Harbour.

Coastguard spokesman Doug Jeffries said that although both crew members had buoyancy aids and flares, the lack of a VHF radio had made communication virtually impossible, while the absence of navigation lights made the dinghy difficult to see at night.