Both Shoreham RNLI lifeboats were launched on Sunday 3 April at 2.50pm after reports of a small fishing vessel found with no-one on board.
A team of local trawlers one mile off Lancing had found the vessel while they were returning to Shoreham. It had its anchor deployed and there were personal items onboard, including a mobile phone.
Both the inshore lifeboat, Barry Lazell, and the all-weather lifeboat, Enid Collett, were launched. The crew of the inshore lifeboat searched the boat and passed details of the phone and vessel to the coastguard. Meanwhile, the all-weather lifeboat started a search of the area.
Around 15 minutes later the coastguard contacted the lifeboat crews to inform them that the skipper of the vessel had been found by a member of his family. He had boarded another boat to help the skipper collect a fishing net and was then going to return to his boat. Both lifeboats were stood down from the search and returned to station.
