FIREFIGHTERS battled to avert a pollution disaster this morning.

They were ferried out to a 50ft fishing vessel to pump water out of the sinking boat because its fuel and oil threatened pollution to Millbrook Lake.

A tug boat took the firefighters, from Torpoint, and their equipment out to the vessel.

They used portable pumps to remove water from the sinking boat, pumping out around 50,000 litres of clean water over the morning.