Helensburgh lifeboat called to rescue three stranded divers

The callout by HM Coastguard was made on Sunday, December 22 where they requested the launch of the boat after reports of the divers stranded on the Gantock rocks off the coast of Dunoon.

The coastguard helicopter had also been requested to attend and made its way to the area to help.

The decision was made to launch the town's lifeboat after an assessment of the weather conditions.

The callout by HM Coastguard was made on Sunday, December 22 (Image: Simon Jackson Rhu Marina) The weather conditions were particularly challenging at the time with rough seas and very strong winds following a yellow weather warning for 70mph wind covering all of Scotland, northern England and most of Northern Ireland at the start of the weekend.

The lifeboat launched at 1.30pm and slowly made its way along the shelter of the Kilcreggan coastline before crossing to the Dunoon area.

Arriving at the Gantock rocks at about 2pm, the helicopter was already there and brought the divers to safety.

The lifeboat was stood down and returned to the lifeboat station.

The weather conditions made it harder for the crews (Image: Simon Jackson Rhu Marina) Howard Morrison, lifeboat operations manager, said: “Given the weather conditions at the time we made a careful assessment of the situation before deciding to launch.

"The wind was very strong, over force eight at times. Fortunately the three people were winched to safety.

“We have had some strong winds in the past few weeks and we urge people to stay well back from stormy, wintery seas and check the weather forecast and tide times before venturing out on the water or coastal walks.”

The lifeboat has been called out more than 2,000 times since the station was founded in 1965.

For more information about the Helensburgh Lifeboat rescue station and the work they do, visit rnli.org.