The lifeboat first launched at 3.19pm at the request of Dover Coastguard when the yacht Folk Music reported being in trouble one mile south of the harbour entrance.

The mast had snapped at deck level and the ropes had wrapped around the propeller.

Whilst towing the yacht back to her moorings the lifeboat passed a sailing dinghy that appeared to be having problems; the crew checked with the sailors - who said that they were alright.

Later, at 4.34pm, the lifeboat was tasked to assist the sailing dinghy 1357, which had capsized in the River Rother, where the occupants were struggling.

The lifeboat arrived at 4.40 pm and had them under tow four minutes later.

It turned out that whilst the dinghy had been knocking against the wall of the river, the outer hull of the twin hulled boat had split and water had flooded between the two hulls, causing problems with up-righting the dinghy.

Tony Edwards, RNLI Deputy Launching Authority for Rye Harbour RNLI Lifeboat, said: "Boating and watersports should be fun but as we all know, even the best prepared can run into unexpected problems.

"With this in mind, the RNLI has produced a range of safety information designed to help users stay safe. For more information visit www.rnli.org.uk/seasafety."