It was double trouble yesterday for local yacht Caprice, as it ended up using Armed Forces of Malta services twice in the space of 24 hours.

Earlier on Saturday morning, AFM surface assets were dispatched to assist the Caprice, which was sailing some two nautical miles off the northern coast of Gozo. The AFM's Rescue Coordination Centre (RCC Malta) at Luqa Barracks' headquarters, was informed at 2.50pm that the yacht had a rope entangled in its propeller. A 4th Regiment Explosives Ordnance Disposal (EOD) diver was rushed to the scene from their base on Manuel Island to assist the stranded vessel.

This morning, at 5.30am, RCC Malta was informed that the Caprice had run aground near the Fra Ben point, limits of Qawra. The AFM's Air Wing immediately dispatched an Alouette rescue-helicopter to the scene, wherefrom a yachtsman and his dog where winched up to safety. The yachtsman was taken to St Luke's Hospital suffering from shock. This was an all-time first for the AFM soldiers having winch-rescue a dog to safety from a developing incident, the AFM said

In the meantime, RCC Malta continued to monitor the ongoing status of a Spanish-registered tug-boat that had picked up some 26 migrants from a boat on Saturday when well within the Libyan SRR.