BOTH of Poole's lifeboats were launched after the coastguard received numerous reports of a red flare over Holes Bay.

Volunteer RNLI crew were quickly on scene and conducted a search of the entire bay, out to the ferry terminal.

An RNLI spokesman said: "Conditions in the harbour were breezy, with heavy drizzle, however visibility was good.

"Despite an extensive search of the area, the crews found nothing untoward and there had been no more sightings, so the decision was made by the UK Coastguard to stand the lifeboats down.

"The volunteer crew returned back to the station, the lifeboats were washed down, refuelled where required and were ready for service by 1am."

The initial call to launch came in at 11pm on Friday. (Feb 7)