The lifeboat was launched after a passing vessel reported a dinghy drifting semi-submerged between Whitstable and the Middle Sands.

The lifeboat crew located the dinghy half a mile NW of the Columbine Buoy. It was in a very derelict condition, had obviously been in the water for some time, and  there were no signs of recent occupation.

The dinghy was therefore brought aboard the lifeboat and landed back onto the beach.

Later enquiries revealed that it had gone adrift from a mooring at Harty Ferry around a month ago.

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