A fishing boat undergoing maintenance at Porth Penrhyn, drifted from its moorings in the early hours of Tuesday morning and collided with Bangor Pier.
Beaumaris lifeboat received a page from the UK Coastguard Centre at Holyhead at 2:36am on Tuesday 24 August, relating to a fishing boat which had struck Bangor Pier.
The Beaumaris Atlantic 85 inshore lifeboat with her volunteer crew launched and proceeded to the casualty vessel. The lifeboat arrived at the location and found the craft with her bow stuck on the stanchions of the pier.
The boat had been berthed on the outside wall of Penrhyn dock but somehow her two mooring lines had been removed from the bollards and her shore power supply disconnected. The boat was being refurbished and no one was aboard. A contractor who had been working on the boat boarded the vessel at Bangor Pier and confirmed the hull was still watertight.
Unfortunately, however he did not have access to the engine start key as this had been removed for safety reason by a mechanic who had been working on the engine.
Once on scene one of the lifeboat volunteers boarded the craft and having ensured that all was well with the contractor aboard and that vessel was watertight an assessment was made by the helmsman as to the best course of action. It was decided for safety reasons that the vessel should be towed back to the safety of the of the nearest berth as unfortunately she could not be returned to Penrhyn dock due to the 2.7 metre draught of the vessel and with a falling tide.
A stern tow was quickly established, and the boat came free of the pier without any difficulty the craft then being towed to berth alongside the Prince Madog at Menai Bridge Pier.
The Bangor Mobile Coastguard Rescue team had also been tasked and was asked by Holyhead Coastguard to check the pier for any signs of damage and then proceed to help with berthing the vessel at Menai Bridge.
However, it became clear when lifeboat approached Menai Bridge Pier that due to some yachts being alongside the Prince Madog that this preferred option could not be utilised.
The Lifeboat then partially retraced her course and placed the fourteen-metre fishing boat on one of the Admiralty moorings located near the Gazelle Hotel.
The contractor elected to stay aboard the vessel and would arrange for the engine key to be brought to him later in the day also liaise with the police regarding how the vessel became detached from the bollards at Penrhyn dock.
Once this was completed the lifeboat was released from the service by the U.K. Coastguard to return to her station at Beaumaris arriving at 4.08 am to be refuelled and cleaned under the current Covid 19 instructions. Once this had been completed the crew left the station at 5:00 am to return home.
