THE annual Poole lifeboat station open day event was punctuated by a real emergency 'shout' at the weekend.

Hundreds of visitors to the town's RNLI lifeboat station watched as the inshore lifeboat was tasked by Solent Coastguard to rescue a capsized dinghy at the entrance of Poole Harbour.

Volunteer lifeboat crew made their way through the crowds gathered, pagers bleeping, and rushed to the dinghy's aid.

No-one was injured in the incident, but it provided a clear reminder for the need to support the volunteer maritime rescue charity.

Lifeboat coxswain Jonathan Clark said: "The day is about promoting the station, it is always a busy day with lots of hard work from the crew, families and fundraisers.

"We would like to thank all the people and businesses for being so generous in donating the goods and prizes that help make the open day a success.

"We are a charity, not government-funded and are independent of the coastguard, every penny raised during our open day will help us to keep on saving lives at sea.

"We had a brilliant turnout, and then with the pagers ringing out for real, it gave the visitors a chance to experience a lifeboat launch at first-hand."

Poole's lifeboat station, one of the busiest in the country, hosted a number of attractions during the open day.

Aside from the chance to meet the volunteers and check out the all-weather and inshore RNLI lifeboats, there were also cakes and goodies, a range of side stalls and even a dog show - with entries crafted from lifeboat wellies.

Poole Mayor Cllr Xena Dion opened the event, on Sunday, August 7, which also included representatives from Dorset Police, RNLI lifeguards, the RNLI coastal safety team, Poole Coastguard, and Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service.