12 MILE PASSAGE IN 30 KNOT WINDS Surfer saved by Atlantic after night search in severe weather The Thanks of the Institution on Vellum has been awarded to Nigel Sweeny, the helmsman of St Catherine's (Jersey, Channel Islands) lifeboat during a night service in severe conditions in which a surfer was located and rescued after a 12 mile passage in rough confused seas and 30 knot winds.and 30 knot winds.

Reporting on the service the deputy divisional inspector, south, Jim Drake said 'during the entire service helmsman Sweeny handled the lifeboat with considerable skill, using his extensive knowledge of boat and local area conditions to best effect.' Framed letters of appreciation signed by the Director have been sent to crew members Paul Richardson and John Heyes in recognition of their valuable contribution to the service.

It was 2110 on 1 January 1994 when the Jersey station honorary secretary, Captain Roy Bullen, heard from the police that a person was in distress in the water off Plemont, to the north west of the island.

The St Catherine's Atlantic 21 Jessie Eliza launched with some difficulty at 2136 into breaking seas up to 10ft high - which at one stage moved lifeboat, trailer and tractor up the beach.

Breakers The lifeboat, manned by helmsman Nigel Sweeny and crew members Paul Richardson and John Heyes, first headed out to sea to clear the breakers in St Catherine Bay and then began the 12 mile passage to Plemont, where the last cries for help had been heard. The passage was hampered by large confused seas kicked up by 30 knot south westerly winds and ebb tide, and also by violent rain and hail showers which reduced visibility to less than 20 yards.

St Helier's Tyne class lifeboat had been launched at 2200 to help with the search, and she arrived in the search area at 2245, followed by the Channel Island Air Search aircraft.

The St Catherine Atlantic arrived at Plemont at 2235, by which time the bay had been lit from the shore by police and fire officers, assisted by lifeboat crew members who had driven around from the station.

Although the casualty had been seen from the shore at times he was not visible when the lifeboat arrived. A search was started using flares and spotlight but the sea was now breaking some 200 yards off the shore and visibility was further reduced by strong winds and persistent driving rain. Communications were also difficult, hampered by the proximity of the cliff face and a fault with the lifeboat's radio.

At 2250 the lifeboat located the casualty clinging to his surf board and helmsman Sweeny manoeuvred the boat in difficult conditions enabling his crew to recover the casualty on the first attempt.

Once safely in the lifeboat the crew im-mediately began first aid treatment as the casualty was suffering from the cold. He told the crew there was probably a second casualty still in the water in the immediate area so helmsman Sweeny resumed the search.

Within a short time the casualty in the lifeboat started showing signs of hypothermia, shock and seasickness so, with the St Helier lifeboat and the aircraft available to continue the search, helmsman Sweeny decided to land the casualty at the nearest landing place - Bonne Nuit Bay four miles to the east - and after a difficult passage he was landed to a waiting ambulance at 2330.

The Atlantic then made the four mile passage back through the rough seas to resume the search with the St Helier lifeboat and the aircraft, this time concentrating on the immediate area of the shoreline.

Rocks Unable to search effectively from a distance, helmsman Sweeny manoeuvred the lifeboat close to the rocky shoreline, often less than two boat lengths away from the cliffs and rocks always having to be aware of rocks and 'heads' which would suddenly appear in the swell.

At 0030 the St Catherine lifeboat started her 12 mile passage back to station, again through rough seas and heavy rain. She arrived at 0130, refuelled, repairs were made to the radio and she was ready for service again at 0400.

The search, having been called off temporarily at 0130, was resumed early the next morning with both the St Helier and St Catherine lifeboats taking part.

At 0812 the pilot cutter Ronez sighted a person on a surf board near St Aubins Bay, on the south of the island. This was the other missing person and after he had been recovered by the cutter and returned to St Helier the search was finally called off at 0826.TRAUMATIC SERVICE FOR CREW OF ATLANTIC Inshore lifeboat crew members dive to sunken car The Thanks of the Institution on Vellum has been awarded to New Brighton lifeboat crew members Mike Jones and Tony Clare for the bravery and determination they showed when trying to rescue the occupant of a car which had plunged off a nearby Esplanade.Framed letters of thanks from the Chairman have also been sent to crew members Neil Jones, Barry Shillinglaw and shore helper Tony Jones for the efforts they made to resuscitate the casualty, and letters of thanks from the Director have also been sent to Helmsman Bob Barrass, crew member Mike Garbutt and shore helpers Stuart Ward, Arne Jensen, Eric Stancliffe and Bob Marr (the tractor driver) for their excellent support and quick thinking.

The incident began at 2348 on Tuesday 7 June 1994 when Liverpool Coastguard informed the station that a car had driven into the sea at the bottom of a steep hill at Egremont, Wallasey. Lifeboat assistance was requested.

Buoy By 2355 the crew had assembled and the relief Atlantic 21 class lifeboat Ernest Armstrong was on her way by road to the launching slipway. The night was fine with good visibility and a north westerly Force 3. There was a slight sea but a strong ebb stream was beginning to run.

The Coastguard now had a report of a person clinging to a nearby buoy and asked the lifeboat to investigate. Nothing was found, so she then went to the promenade at Egremont.

Immediately after the launch of the lifeboat, the tractor, shore helpers and other crew members not required for the actual launch made their way to the scene of the accident by land. The shore crew arrived some four minutes before the lifeboat and at about the same time as the police, fire brigade and the council-run inshore rescue boat.

The scene at Egremont was confused.

It was obvious that the promenade railings had been breached, but the vehicle was nowhere to be seen. RNLI shore helper and ex-crew member Tony Jones took the initiative by securing a rope ladder to the railings and shore helpers and crew members Mike Jones and Tony Clare went into the water shortly after midnight - just as the lifeboat arrived and began searching for the vehicle with lights, paddles and echo sounder. The water was about 10ft deep and the vehicle was thought to be about 30ft from the sea wall.

Mike Jones and Tony Clare repeatedly dived to try to locate the vehicle and two fire crew put on their breathing apparatus and entered the water. However the firemen were not trained divers and could not swim in their gear so were called back out of the water by their senior officer.

The vehicle was eventually located with the lifeboat's echo sounder, and Mike Jones was then able to stand on what was now obviously a car, lying upside down.

He attached a fire brigade rope to the car's axle and the shore crew and emergency services hauled it closer to the sea wall - into about 8ft of water - and alsoturned it onto its side. Mike Jones managed to open a back door, with the help of Mike Garbutt aboard the nearby lifeboat, and Tony Clare felt around inside the car and caught hold of the occupant. With the aid of Mike Jones he managed to pull him clear, and then into the lifeboat - with some difficulty as the man was big and his clothes waterlogged. Mike Jones and Tony Clare were able to confirm that there was nobody else in the car, a task aided by a swiftly receding tide. The time was now about 0015.

Aboard the lifeboat crew members Neil Jones and Barry Shillinglaw started resuscitation and heart massage - an extremely unpleasant task at this stage because of body fluids, blood and vomit.

Helmsman Bob Barrass decided to beach the lifeboat at a slip about 200m away and, with resuscitation continuing, he beached at moderate speed so that the Atlantic came half clear of the water.

Resuscitation The ambulance had not yet arrived so the lifeboat crew laid the casualty on the ground and shore helper Tony Jones took over heart massage until it arrived some minutes later. Resuscitation attempts continued for about 15 minutes led by the paramedics with the lifeboat crew and shore helpers backing them up, until the ambulance left at about 0035.

The lifeboat was then manually relaunched and returned to station, being refuelled and ready for service at 0130 on 8 June.

Despite everyone's attempts, and also being kept on a life support machine at the hospital, the casualty subsequently died.

Summing up his report of the incident the deputy divisional inspector, west, George Rawlinson said 'this was an extremely traumatic service for the large number of people concerned, and left several members of the crew and helpers emotionally strained for some time. Undoubtedly the RNLI took the initiative in the early stages and those taking part have been showered with praise for their efforts. This whole service was very much a team effort with our volunteers working closely and in harmony with other emergency services.'X boat used stranded on in rescue of youths rockLifeboat services are not always in heavy weather and not always to professional or amateur mariners, as a service by Douglas's Tyne this summer illustrated.

On a fine but cloudy August Sundaywith little or no wind a 999 call to the Coastguard led to Sir William Hillary launching to help in the rescue of two youths trapped some 80ft up an outlying rock beneath steep cliffs at Dhoon Bay.

They had not appreciated either the steepness of the rock or the rising tide.

The rock was just over eight miles from the station and the Tyne was at the scene only half an hour after the pagers had been activated.

The foot of the more gentle seaward side was now covered by the tide and the landward face of the rock was too steep to descend leaving them trapped some 20ft from the top of the 100ft slab.

Coastguard cliff rescue team members scaled the steep inner face with the aid of ropes and the lifeboat's small inflatable X boat, which was the only boat able to reach the foot of the slab, was positioned beneath the youths. The two survivors were then clipped to a Coastguard and carefully lowered one at a time into the inflatable by the cliff rescue team. The two youths were then rowed ashore, unharmed but rather shaken by their experience.Two lifeboats help in evacuation of 114 from stranded passenger vessel. Both of Poole's lifeboats were called on to help with the evacuation of 114 passengers from a passenger vessel which ran aground in darkness and thick fog on the night of 29 and 30 July 1994.

The 65ft Purbeck Gem had been on an evening cruise to Wareham Quay and was returning in thick fog when she ran aground in a narrow channel in the upper reaches of the harbour.

The station's relief Brede, Foresters Future, was first on the scene at 0246, hav-ing located the casualty by radar in the extremely poor visibility. One of the coxswain's first moves was to ask that the bar be closed and to put a crew member aboard to organise the passengers.

The inshore lifeboat arrived at 0340 and put a first-aider aboard to examine and look after a passenger. He had fallen overboard earlier and was intoxicated and very cold.

The Brede was able to land 48 of the passengers while the ILB stood by and her crew helped with the transfer and general stabilisation of a difficult situation.

Coxswain Steve Vince was able to suggest a local pleasure boat owner who might be able to provide additional carrying capacity to help with the large numbers involved and another passenger vessel, Water Wytch, later arrived to help with the evacuation.

Just before 0700 all of the remaining passengers had been safely disembarked and landed at a nearby Royal Marine base and Purbeck Gem refloated on the rising tide. Foresters Future and Sam and Iris Coles were able to return to their station.The Lighter Side...

The perils of being a lifeboat crew member Extract from a service return from a station which had perhaps best remain nameless: 'Crew member John Smith turned out for this service but was inadvertently locked in our Portakabin when the crew left, and remained a prisoner until they returned from the service. If any payment is due perhaps his name could be included on the list by way of compensation. He is a rather quiet lad and a recent recruit...' Luckily this was a short service, the lifeboat being recalled and back at her station within half an hour! Pincer Movement Seen in a local newspaper: 'A young girl being swept out to sea on a set of inflatable teeth was rescued by a man on an inflatable lobster. Two lifeboats had been launched to go to the aid of the child off Bexhill. 'This sort of thing is all too common' a Coastguard spokesman said.' Common or not, the RNLI has no plans to remodel its own fleet of inflatables!Have you been rescued by the RNLI? If so we would like to hear from you...

We would like to publish an occasional series of real-life incidents in THE LIFEBOAT, incidents from which lessons can be learned and seen through the eyes of those rescued. So, no matter whether you were cut off by the tide, a fisherman towed in after engine failure, a windsurfer swept out to sea or a yachtsman dismasted in a gale - if you were rescued by a lifeboat and there are lessons to learn we would like to hear your story.

It is important that the incident is traced back to its root cause - even back to the builder of the boat, an item missed in a refit years before or simply misreading the tide tables or misinterpreting the weather.

There is no need to be embarrassed. Accidents, mishaps and plain misfortune can strike the best prepared, but if you would prefer anonymity we are happy to change the names of people and vessels involved.

Send your account to The Editor, THE LIFEBOAT, RNLI West Quay Road, Poole, Dorset BH15 1 HZ stating clearly whether you are happy for names to be published or whether you would prefer anonymity.

Please provide dates and the lifeboat station involved as we will cross-reference your account with the Return of Service filed by the station.

A photograph of the vessel or the people involved would be useful.

Rescue accounts can also be useful for fundraising purposes, if you are happy for the RNLI to use your account or quotes from it in any other way please say so when writing to us.

Two sides of the same coin...

The same incident in the words of the coxswain... and of the survivors Station Name: Lifeboat: Date of Launch: Cause of Service: Weather: Visibility: Wind: Sea state: Swell: Tenby RFA Sir Galahad 26 June 1994 Vessel lost her rudder Rain Moderate South west Force 5 to 6 Rough Two metres I was told by the station honorary secretary that a vessel had lost her rudder off Pendine. Another boat was towing her but conditions had got too bad for them and they required immediate assistance.

On reaching them they were close to the beach, just inside the surf. The towing boat slipped her tow line and we passed our line to the casualty and towed her out into deeper water.We then crossed the bar and took her up to Llanstephan.

There were two people and two dogs on board - all wearing lifejackets.

At Llanstephan we left them in the care of the Coastguard and returned to Tenby to re-house.

Alan Thomas, Coxswain Tenby West Division The Honorary Secretary RNLI Tenby Dear Mr Squibbs, I am not normally an inarticulate person, but whatever I try to say to express my gratitude to the Tenby lifeboat crew will be inadequate.

My husband and I, with our two dogs, were returning yesterday from Saundersfoot to Llanstephan in our 22ft boat when we lost our rudder. The other small boat travelling in company with us tried to help but things were getting steadily nastier when your boys arrived, like the cavalry, and saved the day - and us.

Believe me, I have never been so thankful to see anything in my life as I was to see that lifeboat arriving. They must be mad to do something like that voluntarily when they could be sitting safely at home watching television with the family, or having a quiet pint, but I thank God they are, and I'm sure many like me have cause to say the same, Please accept the enclosed as a donation in gratitude to the RNLI from my husband and myself, and please pass on our wholly inadequate thanks to the crew. We think they're all wonderful! Yours Sincerely, (Editor's note: The donation from the yacht's crew was a very substantial one) TRAGIC ATTEMPT TO SAVE WOMAN IN SEAMersey in heavy breakers and backwash only yards from stone sea wallScarborough's Mersey class lifeboat Fanny Victoria Wilkinson and Frank Stubbs was involved in attempts to save a woman who had been swept into the sea at Scarborough on 12 August 1994. Sadly they were in vain.

The lifeboat was at times less than a boat's length from the sea wall, in extremely broken water and buffeted by a breaking sea bouncing back from the stonework.

It was at 2010, shortly before highwater that the Coastguard informed the station that the woman had been swept into the sea and requested an immediate launch. Just eight minutes later the Mersey was afloat and heading for the scene, only a mile to the north of the station, arriving there at 2029.

The wind was from the north east at up to Force 5, but the sea here was extremely rough with a breaking sea over 12ft high running in to a sheer wall from which it rebounded with considerable force.

Eight times coxswain/mechanic Richard Constantine came in stern first through the breakers, holding the lifeboat's head to the sea, but each time the Mersey's crew could not quite reach the casualty.

Observers ashore said that at times the 12m lifeboat was less than 10m from the wall, but still she could not get close enough to haul the woman from the sea.

Before another attempt could be made a Sea King helicopter arrived at the scene and was able to retrieve the casualty from the breakers. Tragically she did not survive.

Speaking to the Scarborough Evening News Coxswain/mechanic Constantine, who has been a crew member and mechanic for ten years but who was making only his second trip as coxswain, said: 'I've been in the lifeboat in a lot worse conditions, but at the depth we were in and the distance from the sea wall it was probably the worst situation I've been in.

'We made several attempts to get as near as we dared to the sea wall without smashing up the lifeboat. Unfortunately it wasn't enough to pick the lady up.

'I just did what I'd been trained to do for the last ten years . You are hoping to get somebody out alive and at the same time you have the safety of your crew on your mind. What happened did upset me and I know the crew put on a brave face but were deeply affected by it.'Busy afternoon for AmbleAmble's Waveney class Margaret Graham had a busy afternoon on 14 August, attending three calls in three hours.

She was first launched at 1207 to the fishing boat Nina with ten anglers aboard.

No sooner had she taken the anglers aboard and towed the vessel to Amble than she heard another call, from the motor cruiser Optimist, which was suffering from engine trouble.

The station's inshore lifeboat launched and succeeded in putting a tow aboard the second casualty, but once the survivors had been landed the larger Waveney put to sea again to take over.

Margaret Graham had just picked up the tow when she heard a call from a local fisherman and lifeboat crew member K.

Henderson that a nearby fishing coble An Mordros, which also had ten anglers aboard, was taking water rapidly. The Waveney relinquished the tow to the inshore lifeboat once again and made best speed to the latest casualty.

The anglers had already been taken off by another local boat when the Waveney arrived and so they were duly taken aboardthe lifeboat leaving only the skipper aboard An Mordros. However she was sinking rapidly so Mr Henderson took his own coble alongside and rescued him shortly before she sank.

With the excitement of the past few hours over Margaret Graham was able to take her second batch of rescued anglers ashore and was back at her station by 1500.LIFEBOAT ON PASSAGE TO NEW STATION RESCUES MOTOR CRUISERFirst service for new station's Arun The lifeboat scheduled to go on service at Fenit, an RNLI station being re-established on the west coast of Ireland (see 'Chalk and Cheese', this issue) was involved in her first service on 25 June while still on her way to the station following crew training in Poole.

While on passage from St Peter Port to Salcombe (lifeboats often take a roundabout route to their station to provide plenty of sea time to complete the training) the coxswain and crew of Ralph and Bonella Farrant heard a Mayday broadcast on their VHP radio at 1745 from the motor cruiser Mayfly. The casualty had broken down 300 yards from nearby Bolt Tail and was in danger of being swept on to the rocks. As the life-boat was close by and already at sea deputy divisional inspector for Ireland Andrew Clift - in charge of the lifeboat for the passage - contacted Brixham coastguard and the lifeboat was tasked with the rescue.

Twenty minutes later the cruiser was located and although in no immediate danger she was taken in tow to Salcombe where she was handed over to the care of the harbour master - who is also Salcombe lifeboat's honorary secretary! Although not a difficult service, conditions were good throughout with only a light SW wind and small sea, and miles away from their home station the rescue marked Fenit's re-entry into RNLI records.Shell-shock for second coxswain at Appledore! John Pavitt, the second coxswain of Appledore's Tyne class lifeboat had something of a shock while he was carrying out a routine inspection of the lifeboat's moorings.

For, while 30ft under the surface John came across two 85mm World War II shells.

However, unruffled by his find, he decided to bring them to the surface for disposal - putting them in a bucket of water to await the arrival of a Royal Navy bomb disposal team from Plymouth.

John had already had experience of finding relics from the war, having found a similar piece of artillery a few years ago.

The shells were later safely detonated on the beach.Lifeboat provides inflatable and first aid in team effort for fallen climber Members of Anstruther lifeboat crew can be made out on the foreshore in this photograph providing first aid while a helicopter prepares to lift an injured climber to safety.

The lifeboat was on service on 14 May when the coastguard asked her to investigate a report that a climber had fallen on cliffs at Kencraig Point, only 10 minutes away.

She arrived to find a man waving for help and so the small X Boat was inflated and two first aiders from the crew were landed to assist the man's companion who had fallen some 30ft.

Due to the nature of his injuries a helicopter was called and while awaiting its arrival the coastguard cliff rescue team arrived and lowered a doctor and nurse down the cliff, helped by the lifeboat crew.

The station honorary secretary described the service as 'a text book team effort, involving all the services.'.