Woman clings to side of ferry for life after boat trip goes wrong

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A teenaged girl had to cling to the side of a ferry for her life after a boat trip in Poole Harbour went wrong.

Vicky Redfern, 18, had been on a day trip in Dorset with her friend Phil Hodges, 19, and his dad Robert Hodges, 48, when their speedboat engine seized and they drifted helplessly into the side of the 100ft car ferry.

According to the Daily Mail, Phil had just got off at a slipway on the Sandbanks peninsula to use the toilet before the engine of the 18ft boat seized.

Fearing the speedboat would capsize and suck them under, Robert told Vicky to step onto the 10-inch wide ledge on the side of the ferry, two feet above the water. She clung on until staff on board opened a hatch for her, which she shuffled 30ft to reach.

Luckily, a passing RNLI lifeboat towed Rob to safety.

According to The Sun, she said: "Rob told me to climb onto the ferry and hold onto the side in case the boat flipped over.

"I knew if I stayed on the boat I could have got sucked under the ferry but I was trying not to think about it otherwise I would have panicked and been in even more danger.

"I pushed myself up onto the side and sat there and drew my knees to my chest. I grabbed hold of the ledge either side of me to make sure I didn't fall in.

"Luckily after about five minutes an RNLI lifeboat passed by and they got the ferry staff to open a side hatch for me.

"I got onto my feet and turned around so my back was to the water and held onto a railing above my head and shuffled sideways until I got to the door.

"It was a big relief when I stepped onto the right side of the ferry and I was even more pleased to see Rob being towed to safety."

A spokesman for the RNLI said: "The boat was perilously close to the ferry.

"It could easily have been sucked under as the conditions out in the harbour were rough and choppy.

"It had the potential to be a nasty incident and they were extremely lucky we just happened to be passing."

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