Three yachts, who were sailing as a group, all had to be rescued by the RNLI as high winds battered the UK over the weekend.

Just before 0830 on Sunday the first yacht, Martinez, issued a Mayday while sailing from Scarborough to Whitby, although by the time Scarborough’s volunteer lifeboat crew reached the boat, Martinez had dropped anchor and was no longer in imminent danger.

However, en route to Martinez the second yacht, Shameless, lost its skipper overboard and Humber Coastguard diverted the lifeboat to assist Shameless, while the Whitby lifeboat and a RAF helicopter were also launched.

The remaining Shameless crew managed to retrieve the MOB before the lifeboat arrived, but concerns about the amount of time he spent in the water prompted the helicopter to winch him up and take him to Scarborough Hospital.

Then as Martinez and Shameless were being towed ashore, the third member of the hapless trio, Bandit, also requested coastguard assistance.

An RNLI spokesman said that the Whitby Lifeboat was released from its yacht first, so it left Scarborough Harbour to assist Bandit.

The lifeboat located Bandit and it too was towed to the harbour.

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Photo courtesy of Scarborough RNLI/John Porter.