Crowdfunding launches for Guernsey fishermen who lost his boat

Thursday, 2 October 2025 12:08

The Guernsey community is rallying to support a fisherman after his vessel sank near Sark.

Around midday on Tuesday (30 September), Guernsey Coastguard were notified that one person had been recovered from the water and a boat was partially submerged near Sark.

Richard Keen, who was diving for scallops at the time, heard about the incident over his ship's radio.

He gathered a crew and sailed to the scene.

"Luckily, the boat was still floating when we got there, so we put some lift bags and lots of buoys on it and towed it back.

"It was a long and slow tow, it took two and a half hours to get it back to St Peter Port.

"It was the fisherman's lucky day that we were around and happy to salvage his boat, but it is sad that this happened."

Richard says that the community response has pleasantly surprised him, with other fishermen lending a hand on the day and a JustGiving page raising thousands to support the fisherman.

"When we got him to the harbour, there must have been 20 or 30 people on the quay.

"Everybody went to grab a rope and pull, shuffle things and unload all the gear off my boat.

"It is nice that there is a helpful community.

"Hopefully, this young fisherman will be able to get back on his feet."

Richard captured the rescue on camera: