#RNLI - Kilkeel RNLI went to the aid of the fishing boat which reported a fire in its engine room on Wednesday evening (24 February).
The 14m fishing vessel, with two men on board, was 11 miles south-east of Kilkeel when the incident was reported at 5.20pm.
Arriving on the scene, the lifeboat crew found that the fire had been extinguished but there was a problem with the steering.
Kilkeel RNLI volunteer crew member Alexander McCauley boarded the stricken vessel to assess the damage and address the steering issues.
Once repaired, the fishing vessel headed for Kilkeel but after about two miles under her own steam the steering broke down again, with the rudder locked to port.
The vessel was then taken under tow by the Kilkeel lifeboat for the remaining five miles to Kilkeel Harbour.
Another local fishing boat, Oceanus with skipper Neil McKee, followed the vessels to Kilkeel, while the Irish Coast Guard helicopter Rescue 116 was also in attendance till the vessel was safely under tow.
The Clogherhead RNLI lifeboat was also dispatched to the scene but was released from duty once the team's Kilkeel colleagues had the situation under control.
Weather conditions during the callout were described as good.
"Putting a crew member aboard another vessel and towing the vessel is something that we practice regularly and everything went smoothly," said Kilkeel RNLI helm Gerry Smyth. "With the conditions being good the rescue went exactly as planned.’
John Fisher, Kilkeel RNLI lifeboat operations manager, added that the successful rescue demonstrated the excellent working relationships that have been developed between the coastguard, Clogherhead RNLI, Rescue 116 and the Kilkeel lifeboat crew.
Kilkeel RNLI's crew for the callout comprised helm Gerry Smyth and crew members William Charleton, Alexander McCauley and Sam Graham.