Search in fog THICK FOG had descended on Scarborough when, on the night of Saturday July 27, 1985, the lifeboat station's honorary secretary received a report that red flares had been sighted some 2'/2 to 3 miles south of the castle.

There was a light south-south-easterly breeze and visibility was about 120 feet when, at 2255, Scarborough's 37ft Oakley class lifeboat, Amelia, launchedfrom her carriage with Coxswain Ian Firman at the helm. He set a course for the promontory Yons Nab and began a search down the coast, taking the lifeboat between the shore and some of the outlying rocks.

Visibility was down to 20 feet when the lifeboat, about two thirds of the way to Yons Nab, received a message from the oil tanker Matco Clyde saying she had a target on her radar, inshore from where the lifeboat was searching. The lifeboat's own radar had developed a fault with the picture growing steadily weaker and her echo sounder had stopped working.

Slowly the lifeboat crept towards the shore; passing inside one group of rocks she finally reached the given position where the water was breaking both fore and aft of the lifeboat. The radar reading turned out to be a disused gun battery on the shore. The coxswain then inched the lifeboat back out to sea while his crew shouted to him everytime they saw a rock. The lifeboat then continued slowly along the coast to the point where the flares had first been sighted.

When nothing was found the lifeboat eventually returned to her station which she reached at 0105.

Following this service, carried out in darkness as well as thick fog, a letter of appreciation, signed by Cdr Bruce Cairns, chief of operations, was sent to Coxswain Ian Firman..