A woman who was rescued by lifeboat men during a gale will raise funds for the Royal National Lifeboat Institution by running in Sunday's London Marathon.

Julia Edwards, 24, of Cherry Tree Close, Grove, was rescued by lifeboat when she was 16.

Her parents, Jan and Jeff Lyes, were returning from a trip to France with her in their 30ft motor cruiser in July 1994, when the boat's two engines stopped working.

The family were left adrift in gale force winds in the Thames Estuary, four miles from Sheerness.

They radioed the coastguard and were rescued by lifeboat men after an anxious three-hour wait. Mrs Edwards, a public relations officer at AEA Technology, in Harwell, said: "It was starting to get scary.

"The wind was getting up and the boat was being knocked around in the waves.

"We were stuck in the middle of a busy shipping lane.

"It was such a relief when the lifeboat arrived and I never forgot how grateful I felt towards them."

Mrs Edwards is hoping to raise more than £400 in sponsorship by running in the marathon on Sunday.

She said: "Lifeboat men are barely paid anything. "They can be called up at any time of the day or night and be sent to do things that can be very dangerous.

"I thought running in the marathon would be a nice way to thank them.

"I'm not a sporty person though and I'm aiming for a time of between five-and-a-half and six hours."