A man who suffered a suspected stroke was taken to hospital after rescue teams were called to a motorboat.

Coastguard and lifeboat crews were sent to the 30ft craft which was reported to be at anchor off Hampton Pier, Herne Bay.

A man, 61, had reported that he was suffering the symptoms of a suspected stroke and was the only occupant on his vessel.

Whitstable RNLI and the Herne Bay coastguard were sent to the location following the report shortly after 8am on Friday.

A lifeboat crew member went onboard the motorboat to make an assessment of the casualty and confirmed the symptoms of an apparent stroke.

The man was transferred to the lifeboat which then travelled to the inner ramp within the Neptune Arm at Herne Bay.

The casualty was placed on a stretcher and transferred ashore to await an ambulance which arrived shortly afterwards.

He was placed in their care and taken to Kent and Canterbury Hospital for further assessment and treatment.

The lifeboat then returned to the motorboat to make certain it was securely anchored before returning to station.

Whitstable lifeboat casualty care coordinator Dr Terry Stefani said: "The whole operation went as clockwork, an excellent immediate and accurate assessment was made treatment initiated and a rapid evacuation achieved.

"As time is the essential in the immediate management of strokes, this successful rescue was very definitely under the category of 'a life saved' and was down to the excellent training and performance of the lifeboat crew."

This was the 42nd call of the year for Whitstable's volunteer lifeboat crews.

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