HARWICH lifeboat was called into action after the coastguard lost contact with a vessel.

The Harwich RNLI team were called into action on Tuesday when the Coastguard sent the all-weather lifeboat Albert Brown to investigate an emergency beacon that had been activated about 19 nautical miles offshore.

The incident was treated as urgent because the Coastguard had lost contact with the vessel – meaning the potential for a serious emergency was high.

The Albert Brown was launched swiftly from Harwich and headed out to the location.

However, just as the lifeboat began its journey, the coastguard re-established communication with the vessel and it was confirmed that all was well on board.

It was revealed that the activation of the emergency beacon had been an accidental false alarm.

The lifeboat was stood down and returned to station.