Porthdinllaen lifeboat had to be called out twice in quick succession

The rescue came after the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) warned boat owners to avoid becoming a statistic over the bank holiday.

Rescuers said the owners of the two boats rescued near Caernarfon and Pwllheli could have caused a disaster.

The RNLI launched a record 1,154 times in Wales last year, or 15% up on 2004.

Last weekend the Porthdinllaen lifeboat was called out late on Saturday to an ex-trawler which was towing another boat, a 28ft (8.5m) cruiser, two miles to the west of Porth Ysgaden and six miles from Porthdinllaen on the Llyn peninsula.

RNLI WALES 2005 1,154 launches, up 15% on 2004 1,049 people rescued, up from 1,031 in 2004 Rhyl was busiest station, with 107 launches and 76 rescues

"It was quite rough at the time and we passed a salvage pump onto the first boat because it was taking on water," said Porthdinllaen lifeboat second coxswain Robert Jones.

The five-strong crew from the Birmingham area, who were all on the first boat, agreed to be escorted to Porthdinllaen but after the engine of the trawler failed the life boat had to tow both to safety, said Mr Jones.

By the next morning the boats' mooring rope had snapped and both the trawler and cruiser were beached at Porthdinllaen until high tide on Sunday evening.

The trawler and cruiser were beached until high tide

Some repairs had been made during the day, Mr Jones said, but the crew got into trouble again later on Sunday. Eventually, the cruiser was towed into Pwllheli and the trawler managed to complete the journey on its own.

The trawler also had to be rescued last year when it broke down near Dinas Dinlle outside Caernarfon, Mr Jones said.

"These people were irresponsible. We don't mind if people genuinely break down, but these boats were in really bad condition. This could easily have become a disaster," said Mr Jones.

"They had a radio, but when they contacted us the first time they weren't even sure where they were."

The incident was a week after the RNLI warned boat owners that simple checks could prevent unnecessary call outs.

"It's not only checking your boat to prevent the need for rescue that is important, it is essential to check emergency equipment that you will need should the worst happen," said Nicola Davies, RNLI divisional sea safety manager.

"Wearing lifejackets and having a useable life raft can give you and our lifeboat crews vital minutes should anything go wrong."