The crew of an angling boat had to be rescued by a lifeboat after its engine broke down.

The boat was drifting with three crewmen on board when the Hastings RNLI lifeboat arrived at the scene 15 miles off the shore of the town.

The incident happened at 8am yesterday(05/04) and the vessel was towed back to shore in a two-hour operation.

Graham Furness, the second coxswain of Hastings RNLI lifeboat, said: "This sort of incident can happen to anyone, a day’s fishing disrupted by an unforeseen engine failure.

“I would urge all boat owners to make sure their engines are well serviced before they go to sea, but if they do get into trouble, the volunteer crews of the RNLI are always ready to help."