This month’s
photograph is of Anne Johnstone the Area Fund Raising Manager for North
Strathclyde for the R.N.L.I.
The quiet; almost reflective pose, gave no indication of the professionally presented lecture that was to come.
We started with a broad overview of the operation of the R.N.L.I. and it’s five area managers who oversee / assist / supervise the work of some twelve thousand volunteers. As a charitable organisation we listened intently appreciating the task of raising the many millions required to run the R.N.L.I. operation for a year. Our admiration for those who undertake this keeping the organisation independant of Government money or National Lottery handouts was unalloyed admiration.
The operational side came next and with it the inevitable questions on the control and reporting of maritime accidents and input from the Coast Guard and the correlation with the helicopters of the R.N. And the R.A.F.
The nature of the accidents and the increasing numbers coming from the Leisure Industry to the extent that these now outnumber the misadventures of the professional seaman meant that the busiest stations were not those that were obvious but those close to water which attracted the holidaymaker, most especially in August !
The quiet; almost reflective pose, gave no indication of the professionally presented lecture that was to come.
We started with a broad overview of the operation of the R.N.L.I. and it’s five area managers who oversee / assist / supervise the work of some twelve thousand volunteers. As a charitable organisation we listened intently appreciating the task of raising the many millions required to run the R.N.L.I. operation for a year. Our admiration for those who undertake this keeping the organisation independant of Government money or National Lottery handouts was unalloyed admiration.
The operational side came next and with it the inevitable questions on the control and reporting of maritime accidents and input from the Coast Guard and the correlation with the helicopters of the R.N. And the R.A.F.
The nature of the accidents and the increasing numbers coming from the Leisure Industry to the extent that these now outnumber the misadventures of the professional seaman meant that the busiest stations were not those that were obvious but those close to water which attracted the holidaymaker, most especially in August !
The ROYAL NATIONAL LIFEBOAT
INSTITUTION
Of course the
talk went on to cover the various types of boat now in use. The largest, the
Severn Class, boats which can take aboard up to one hundred and sixty persons
were detailed down to the smaller inshore rigid inflatable craft were not
unknown to members though the intermediate craft had to be dealt with in greater
detail. A complete surprise was to find that hovercraft were now on the
establishment of the R.N.L.I. Following the tragedy of the Chinese cockle
pickers trials were held and a craft chosen. Following this trials were held
around Hunstanton following which a craft might be allocated for the inland /
marsh areas of this part of the country.
The talk continued with how these trials had been noted by other countries especially Sweden. They do not have the likes of Morecambe Bay but they do have a problem where ice forms prohibiting the movement of rescue craft. Here the hovercraft is proving it’s worth as it has a freedom of movement over ice as well as the sea.
The talk moved on from the craft to the Volunteers who man these craft. Originally mainly professional seaman or fishermen as their numbers have diminished so has the need for inshore rescue moved to other waters. Nowadays only ten per cent of the volunteers come from this background the rest coming from the communities close to the Lifeboat Stations. In the likes of Largs many of the locals move out during the day to larger cities looking for employment so that only those within five minutes of the station can be accepted, shopkeepers, teachers and housewives all being found. YES the ladies are now part of the active crews not just the support teams ashore.
A diversion to the Thames, again provoked many questions. A need had been defined following the tragedy on a river boat, of getting a faster / better response to that previously provided by the Police and fire Services. The R.N.L.I. were asked to provide this and surveyed the river and identified three stations which would be required to be built and manned with a new type of boat. To keep to a fifteen minutes deadline these boats would require to be the fastest in service but; of course, they would not be require to tackle the open sea.
This only emphasised the greater involvement of the R.N.L.I.; originally off-shore, then in-shore and
now river rescue work. Crews have to be provided. Only the larger craft have
full time engineers maintaining these increasingly sophisticated vessels.
Crews are now trained partly on site but also down at the R.N.L.I. College
down in Poole Harbour where the capsize trials also take place. Indeed such is
the demand for this training that much of the Scottish Training is done up at
Robert Gordon’s College in Aberdeen where the off shore oil industry
training takes place.
The President brought a successful meeting to a close with vote of thanks for a much appreciated speaker.
The talk continued with how these trials had been noted by other countries especially Sweden. They do not have the likes of Morecambe Bay but they do have a problem where ice forms prohibiting the movement of rescue craft. Here the hovercraft is proving it’s worth as it has a freedom of movement over ice as well as the sea.
The talk moved on from the craft to the Volunteers who man these craft. Originally mainly professional seaman or fishermen as their numbers have diminished so has the need for inshore rescue moved to other waters. Nowadays only ten per cent of the volunteers come from this background the rest coming from the communities close to the Lifeboat Stations. In the likes of Largs many of the locals move out during the day to larger cities looking for employment so that only those within five minutes of the station can be accepted, shopkeepers, teachers and housewives all being found. YES the ladies are now part of the active crews not just the support teams ashore.
A diversion to the Thames, again provoked many questions. A need had been defined following the tragedy on a river boat, of getting a faster / better response to that previously provided by the Police and fire Services. The R.N.L.I. were asked to provide this and surveyed the river and identified three stations which would be required to be built and manned with a new type of boat. To keep to a fifteen minutes deadline these boats would require to be the fastest in service but; of course, they would not be require to tackle the open sea.
This only emphasised the greater involvement of the R.N.L.I.; originally off-
The President brought a successful meeting to a close with vote of thanks for a much appreciated speaker.
