A disabled former police officer was lucky to be alive today after the dinghy he was in capsized during a Dartmouth Royal Regatta race, leaving him trapped below the water for up to four minutes.

Rescuers had to get a line across the 20ft keel boat and haul it partially upright before the paraplegic sailor, former sports diver Robert Boyd, 62, who had been strapped into the dinghy – could be hauled clear of the water just outside the mouth of the River Dart.

Ex-Royal Navy officer Matthew Reed, who was watching the racing, dived into the water to try to rescue Mr Boyd and managed to unstrap him and get him on board a nearby RIB.

Former Torbay lifeboatman Colin Bower, manning a regatta sailing committee support boat, and Trevor Black, who had also been watching the racing from his own craft, managed to get the upturned boat onto

its side so Mr Boyd, who was trapped, was clear of the water.

'He was not breathing when he came out of the water,' said 58-year-old Mr Bower. 'We put him in the recovery position and moved him around. We were going to start resuscitation when he started coughing and breathing on his own.'

He added: 'I think we can all say that he was very lucky that there were three boats around with competent helpers when it happened. It was a team effort.'

Mr Boyd, from Brixham, was on board a boat belonging to the Noss on Dart-based Sailability disabled sailing charity taking part in the races at 1pm on Saturday. He was given oxygen by the Dart RNLI crew before being taken by ambulance to the naval college from where he was airlifted by the Devon air ambulance to Derriford Hospital in Plymouth.

He said afterwards: 'I feel very relieved and very grateful to all the people who saved my life.'

Don Campbell, the chairman of the regatta's joint regatta sailing committee, praised everyone involved in the rescue – especially Mr Reed, whose family lives in Kingswear.

He dived under the boat while it was upside down to try to locate the trapped sailor and as the dinghy was hauled on its side he unstrapped Mr Boyd and got him into the RIB.

Mr Campbell said: 'Between them they saved the man's life, I am quite sure, by their prompt action. If he had been inverted for much longer he would have been a gonner.'

Mr Bower, who was manning the regatta support boat Interceptor with a BRNC cadet crew, said the Dart Sailability craft was caught by a gust and turned over, pitching the three able-bodied crew members into the water but leaving Mr Boyd strapped on board.

He said Mr Reed, a former Royal Navy diver who lived in London but was visiting for the regatta, did not hesitate to dive in and go under the upturned boat. He said: 'He went under and could not find anybody. He came out and Trevor Black threw a rope over the top and tied it to the shroud. He drove forward and pulled the boat onto its side. Matthew swam in and was able to support the guy and undo the straps.

'I went in with the naval cadet I had as crew and we were able to pull the guy out,' said Mr Bower, who was a lifeboat crew member for 35 years, lives in Brixham and runs Maker Coating Systems in Exeter.

RNLI lifeguards provided emergency first aid to the disabled casualty as he was brought ashore. Matt Allen and Chris Rampling were at the regatta promoting the charity and its lifesaving service when Mr Boyd was brought back to the town's pontoon.

Supervisor Liam Krige said: 'Lifeguards contacted Brixham Coastguard and advised they were available to assist if needed, and were tasked to the scene with their trauma kit.

'With the help of St John Ambulance and volunteer lifeboat crew members, the team provided lifesaving first aid treatment to the casualty and assisted his breathing.'

Police said Mr Boyd had made a complete recovery.

A spokesman for the Southampton-based Royal Yachting Association, said it was 'gathering facts' about the incident to see whether it should 'take any further action'.

She added: 'We would be looking at what happened, are there any lessons to be learned from it, are there any issues about the stability of the boat or how many people were on board at the time, things like that.'

A spokesman for Dart Sailability said: 'We are glad to report that the crew member is now home and recovering well.

'We would like to thank the crews of the safety boats, the emergency services and our volunteers who all performed brilliantly in carrying out the rescue.'

Dartmouth emergency services were left also stretched after they were faced with a second seaborne incident at almost exactly the same time along with an elderly woman who collapsed with a suspected heart attack in the town centre.

A sailor on board the vessel Impy ended up in the water after he was struck on the head by a boom and hurled overboard.

His crew managed to rescue him and he was airlifted to Torbay Hospital by a helicopter from RAF Chivenor where he too was later given the all clear.

Other incidents during the regatta included the attempted theft of pub umbrellas, vandals hurling traffic cones and youths involved in fights across the town on Saturday night and Sunday morning.

Police and ambulance were called to an elderly resident at Holsworthy House sheltered home in Newcomen Road – also at around 1pm on Saturday – after she suffered a suspected heart attack.

The regatta road race had to be postponed as the ambulance made it through the crowds to pick up the woman and rush her to Torbay Hospital where she is also recovering.

Police drafted in up to 25 extra officers from the motorcycle traffic team, tactical aid group and special constables to help police the massive regatta event which attracts tens of thousands of people over the main three days of events.

During that time officers made just three arrests – one man was handed an £80 fixed penalty fine for urinating in the street and two for being drunk and disorderly.

One was aged 16 from Wellington in Somerset and the other was aged 24 from Derbyshire. Both were charged and will appear later in court.

Between 9.30pm on Saturday and 1am on Sunday dozens of youths from Dartmouth, Brixham and elsewhere were involved in fights which broke out across the town.

A police spokesman said that the fights – some involving groups and other single males – had happened outside various pubs, in Mayors Avenue, South Embankment and the embankment toilets and seemed to begin after the huge fireworks display had finished.

A police spokesman said the trouble mainly involved 16 and 17-year-olds, with clashes between groups of Dartmouth teenagers and youngsters from Brixham.

He said that due to the extra officers the incidents had not affected the regatta itself although one youth involved suffered cuts to his face and had to be treated by medics.

A 2.20am on Sunday morning, police discovered concrete flowerpots had been hurled into the road in Britannia Avenue – leaving the road partially blocked.

At the same time there were complaints about youths hurling traffic cones around and throwing objects at a window at Dartmouth Hospital.

At 5.35am, three youths were spotted running off with a pair of pub umbrellas worth £200 each from the Floating Bridge Inn.

They were seen running along College Way with the umbrellas before hiding them in bushes. The umbrellas were quickly recovered but the youths had disappeared.

Just before 7am, county highways staff, clearing up after the regatta, complained that seven or eight youths were throwing cones, signs and barriers around on the embankment.