A YACHTSMAN who had been at sea with his dog for 75 days was rescued by RNLI volunteers when his vessel broke down off the coast of Dorset last week.

The sailor has recently completed a solo crossing of the Atlantic. However, on Friday, his 55-foot ketch suffered an engine failure south of Anvil Point in Swanage.

The lifeboat launched during the afternoon.

Volunteers faced difficulties finding the solo sailor as he had limited battery power aboard his vessel, meaning his contact was intermittent.

Luckily, RNLI crew members eventually found the craft using radar.

The ketch was towed back to the shore for repairs - and to give the sailor a night of well-earned shore leave.

Becky Mack of the RNLI said: "The relief all-weather lifeboat at Swanage was called into action on Friday afternoon when the sole crew of a 55-foot ketch explained to the UK coastguard that he had been at sea for 75 days, having crossed the Atlantic, had engine failure and had limited battery power left.

"HM Coastguard had received a call from the lone yachtsman and were concerned as communications were intermittent, so the Swanage lifeboat launched and made for the yacht’s last known position given as 13 nautical miles south of Anvil Point.

"The lifeboat found the yacht using radar and was alongside 40 minutes later in an increasing westerly wind and a moderate sea.

"Two volunteer lifeboat crew were put on board the boat to assess the situation and chat with the skipper to assess the situation. The skipper explained that his yacht had suffered some damage during the crossing and that the engine was irreparable at sea.

"Although he has supplies from him and his dog for another few days it was decided to tow the vessel back to Swanage where her skipper could get a good rest and replenish some of the boat’s supplies and repair some damage before continuing its passage to the final port of call.

"The slow tow was completed when the boat was secured to the lifeboat mooring and the lifeboat was recovered to the boathouse almost five hours after it was initially launched."