On October 27, 1959, Fraserburgh lifeboat, The Duchess of Kent, heads out into a gale and mountainous seas. In escorting one fishing vessel back to harbour and in plucking the crew of another to safety after their yawl had been rolled onto her beam ends, the acting coxswain of the lifeboat, Alex Duthie, and the motor mechanic, Frederick Kirkness, were awarded bronze medals for bravery. The Duchess of Kent was the lifeboat lost in the 1970 disaster..