Firefighters save sailor’s boat from being claimed by rising tide at Arbroath harbour

Angus firemen were called to an unusual aquatic assignment as a boat and 4×4 vehicle were almost claimed by rising tides.

The owner of a leisure boat was trying to load his craft on to a trailer at Arbroath harbour at 1.22pm on Sunday when disaster almost – struck.

He had parked on sand below the waterline as the tide started to come in, and called emergency services when the trailer became stuck.

Local watch manager Blair Fletcher said: “He’d been in the harbour and gone down the public slipway with his 4×4 and trailer to try and get his boat out of the water.

“He’d taken the vehicle off the hard standing on to the sand, reversed the trailer to the water – which I believe boat owners do quite often and managed to get his boat on to the trailer but then the tide was rushing in and wetted the sand.”

Mr Fletcher said the sailor “had the good sense” to unhitch the trailer while he could still drive away.

“At that point the boat and the trailer were stuck in the water and he asked for our help, which was fine.

“We managed to re-float the boat back into the water and rope the trailer back up the slipway.”