POOLE Lifeboat volunteers are warning people about heading out on the water in foggy conditions after they had to rescue two people.

The crew launched their inshore lifeboat on Saturday afternoon to a report of a 32ft yacht stranded outside the harbour.

The vessel, which had two people on board, had run aground on the Sandbanks side of the East Looe Channel.

The harbour was shrouded in fog, so the lifeboat crew used direction finding equipment on the radio to locate the casualties.

The volunteers were soon on scene and, after checking that the casualties were okay, they anchored the yacht before the tide returned.

A second lifeboat was launched to rescue people whose jet skis had broken down in the fog in the middle of the harbour.

They could not find the jet skis at the given location so a search was carried out in the area.

The crew spoke to Parkstone Yacht Club safety boats before searching the shoreline. Then one of the crew spotted three jet skis at Baiter slipway.

They soon found the owners ashore who explained that they had come from Swanage but had ran out of fuel in the main channel.

Poole Lifeboat volunteer Jonathan Clark said: "The harbour was blanketed by fog - it's deceptive as on the shoreline and beaches it’s a bright, sunny spring day, but whilst on the shoreline you can hear the boom of the fog horns and look across the harbour and not see the Purbecks.

"Although it’s tempting to launch - there was lots of yacht club dinghies and people out on the water and we don’t want to spoil their fun - all we ask is that people heed the weather, be prepared and be aware of the conditions."