A fisherman was left hungry and thirsty when he spent an unplanned night on the water after his boat broke down.

The Department of Marine and Ports Services said the man had tried for nearly 24 hours to row ashore before he was rescued.

A report of the incident on its website showed that Bermuda Radio picked up weak and unclear calls from north of Fort George at about 7.10am last Friday.

It said: “Looking with binoculars from Fort George a very small vessel could be observed north of the Narrows towards North East Breaker.

“The pilot boat St David was tasked to go out to this vessel and check for other vessels not visible from Fort George.

“St David was unable to see the vessel and could not proceed far north due to her draught.

“Bermuda Radio contacted the aquarium vessel Endeavour, which was departing Flatts.

“They were unable to assist due to draught, however, the smaller aquarium vessel Rare Bird Too agreed to proceed to the scene.”

The report said that calls were continuously made to the boat asking anyone on board to “identify themselves by standing up and waving their arms”.

It added: “A short time later the vessel being observed visually from Fort George was seen to be waving something in the air.

“At 8.30am Rare Bird Too was on scene and able to confirm the vessel Jah Rock had called Bermuda Radio for assistance as it was broken down.”

The report explained that the 12ft wooden boat had one person on board and had been out fishing since 4am last Thursday.

It said the vessel broke down off Dockyard at 10am that day and the man had been trying to row ashore since then.

The report added: “The person on board was in need of food and water but did not require medical assistance and was towed into St George’s.”