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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
National
Bonnie Christian

Twenty-three people rescued from sinking boat off Welsh coast

The Newquay Coastguard helicopter was called as there was no midwife on the island (Picture: PA Archive/PA Images)

Twenty-three people have been rescued from a sinking boat off the Welsh coast.

The vessel sent out a mayday message just after 7pm on Tuesday after it began rapidly taking on water near St David's Head on the Pembrokeshire coast.

Twenty-one passengers and two crew were onboard.

Two passenger boats, two lifeboats and a coastguard helicopter were involved in the rescue.

The passengers and crew from the sinking boat were evacuated on to one of the passenger boats as the two lifeboats provided safety cover, a Coastguard spokeswoman said.

"The passengers are being taken back to St Justinian where they will be met by the St David's Coastguard rescue team," she added.

The stricken vessel has pumps on board and is heading towards Porthclais.

It had been on a trip off the North Bishops, a series of small islands about three miles from St David's Head, when it got into trouble.

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