Yacht caught in storm found by RNLI near Inis Mór

A solo transatlantic sailor was accompanied by the RNLI lifeboat to the Aran Isalnds in gale-force winds this evening.

The Aran Island lifeboat, under coxswain John O'Donnell, was tasked by Valentia Coast Guard earlier this afternoon to search for the 36ft Altan Girl after the yacht failed to return radio calls.

The lone Canadian sailor on board, a veteran of the northwest passage, was located west of Inis Mór, having survived the last part of his transatlantic crossing in southwesterly gale- to storm-force winds.

The lifeboat crew said he did not require assistance and was able to come in under his own steam.

Several months ago, the same yacht was the focus of a US Coast Guard rescue when it became trapped in Arctic ice some 40 miles northeast of Barrow, Alaska.

Owners Erkan and Elizabeth Joy Gursoy of British Columbia had been on the way from Vancouver to eastern Canada via the northwest passage when the ice froze over.