The Bermuda Weather Service issued a thunderstorm advisory yesterday as Tropical Storm Gabrielle churned its way towards the Island.

And it has also been revealed that two sailors had to be rescued after getting caught up in a squall on Saturday night.

The pair were aboard the 19-foot vessel Hooked Up when it broke anchor in high winds near the oil docks in Ferry Reach.

A Harbour Radio spokesman said: "Because their VHF radio was not working we weren't able to pinpoint their position. We only had a brief communication with them.

"When the wind picks up suddenly it can be very dangerous. The wind was gusting to 35 knots and it's very difficult to see the land because of the rain. It would not be a good place to be in those conditions."

"We dispatched the marine police and the Biostation vessel Weatherbird Two to start searching but about 45 minutes later we heard back from the wife of one of the men on board who said the boat had got into Grotto Bay safely, a couple of miles from where they were."

Last night Tropical Storm Gabrielle was on course to come within 160 miles North North West of Bermuda at 4 p.m. today.

Meteorologist Kimberley Stevenson said: "We will experience gale force winds rather than Tropical Storm force winds - they will be about 34 knots between 1 p.m. and 7 p.m.

Hurricane specialist Richard Pasch, of the National Hurricane Centre in Miami said of Gabrielle which had drenched Florida with up to 11 inches of rain and blacked out half a million utility customers: "All in all, it's not too threatening right now - that's the way we like it."

Gabrielle was a possible threat to ships, Pasch said.

"We have to watch it here for a possible threat to Bermuda, but the projected track is taking it far north of Bermuda ... so we don't anticipate much of a problem for them," he added.

At 6 p.m. Sunday, Gabrielle was about 400 miles west of Cape Hatteras, N.C. It had top sustained winds of 65 mph and was moving east north east at about 20 mph.

Meanwhile the slowly weakening Hurricane Felix appeared to be no threat to the Azores yesterday as it headed north east.

A boater had to be rushed to hospital after he suffered a heart attack on the north shore off Admiralty House yesterday.

The lone boater rang Harbour Radio at around 5 p.m. Marine police, aided by another boat, picked the unconscious man up from his 25 foot pleasure craft and took him to Spanish Point Boat club where he was picked up by an ambulance.