A volunteer lifeboat crew was called out to help a yacht that had lost power and was drifting in a strong tide.

The Lowestoft RNLI Lifeboat, Patsy Knight, was launched just after 7am today (Wednesday, June 13) to help the crew of a yacht who had called for help when they couldn't start their engine and were unable to make any headway.

Lifeboat coxswain John Fox said: 'When we reached the yacht and its crew of two, which was eight miles south-east of Lowestoft, the skipper told us that the yacht's battery had failed and that he was unable to get the engine working.

'There was a strong tide running which was taking them to the south. The 10-metre yacht was on passage from Ijmuiden in the Netherlands to the UK when the problem arose.

'We threw them a line and then towed the yacht into the harbour where they were met the Coastguard rescue officers from Lowestoft and Southwold.'