A 34ft RACING yacht had to be hoisted to safety after it ran aground in Portishead earlier today (Sunday).
The yacht, with its four-person crew, was pushed ashore by the wind onto Denny Island and started taking on water.
The 42-year-old yacht owner then put out a mayday at 4.45pm.
The Coastguard came to the rescue with pumps and eventually hoisted the yacht, called Little Blue, from the water with a crane.
A Coastguard spokesman said: “The keel of the boat struck the ground hard, causing damage under the hull.
“If left in the marina overnight it would have sunk.
“The skipper made the right choice by calling us immediately which allowed us to make a rapid response and we would urge anyone in a similar situation to always do the same.”
No one was hurt.
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