The crew was first alerted at 6am when the Whitby vessel, Nicholas M, suffered engine failure around 10 miles away.

The trawler was already under tow by another Whitby trawler, the Independance, when the lifeboat was launched at around 8.45am.

Lifeboat mechanic Glenn Goodberry said on several occasions the tow rope between the two trawlers snapped.

So, the lifeboat attached a tow line to the stricken vessel’s stern due to tide and swell conditions at the harbour entrance.

It was safely brought back into the harbour at 10.30am.