The West coast of Ireland saw a dramatic increase in its number of lifeboats over the last decade-and-a-half - representing the largest number of new stations to be established in such a short space of time this century. Nicholas Leach, lifeboat enthusiast and member of the Norfolk and Suffolk Reasearch Group takes a look at one of the most significant developments in the RNLI's recent history… In the Winter 1982/3 issue of The Lifeboat.

an article entitled 'Atlantic Watch', by RNLI Deputy Director, Ray Kipling, featured three lifeboat stations on the west coast of Ireland - Arranmore, Galway Bay and Valentia. At the time, these were the only stations covering the entire west coast and were described as three of the remotest stations in the RNLI.

Each was located on an island with enormous distances between - when called out on service the distances which these lifeboats were required to travel were often so great that a lifeboat could be at sea for days at a time. The three stations had sizeable areas of the Atlantic to cover - hundreds of miles - and were all operating the traditional Barnett lifeboats capable of only 8 or 9 knots.

Since then there has been a dramatic change in lifeboat coverage in this area with the establishment of several new lifeboat stations.

In 1982 discussions took place about the possibility of opening a new all-weather station between Arranmore and Galway Bay and in 1988 new inshore lifeboat stations were established at Clifden in Co Galway and at Lough Swilly on the north coast of Donegal.

There were further developments in 1989 when the Institution opened a station at Ballyglass, Co. Mayo for a 12 month evaluation.

Some sixty volunteers came forward and a shortlist of twenty-four was drawn up, of whom eight attended crew training at RNLI Headquarters in Poole. The skipper of the local trawler Veronica, Kevin McHugh, pledged the market value of one tonne of fish every year for the next three years to the funds of the station.

Such enthusiasm ensured the station had a very successful beginning and since then it has gone from strength to strength.

The relief 54ft Arun class lifeboat City of Bradford IV was sent to the station in July 1989 and although she did not become operational until October, she performed her first service before this. In September, after the second coxswain heard that a fishing vessel had fouled her propeller four miles north of the station, City of Bradford IV was launched. She soon found the casualty close to rocks in a Force 5-6 wind, and towed her to safety. The station is now a very well established and important link in the chain of west coast lifeboat stations. Its importance was emphasized in April 1997 when it was announced that a 17m Severn class lifeboat had been allocated to the station.

The opening of stations at Clifden and Ballyglass was just the beginning - once initial steps had been taken, the situation was reviewed again during the early 1990s. It was realised that there was scope for further improvement and in 1994 a new Atlantic station was opened at Bundoran to provide inshore cover for Donegal Bay. There had been a privately operated inshore rescue boat in Bundoran for some years, and this was replaced by the RNLI's new station. Bundoran is a busy resort, and the increase in the number of holiday makers going to Ireland's beautiful west coast was one of the main reasons for the establishment of the new ILB station.

In addition to Bundoran there was a need for another all-weather lifeboat station between Galway Bay and Valentia, as the number of vessels using the west coast was expanding.

Fenit, which operated a lifeboat until 1969, was chosen as the best place from which to operate the lifeboat. In the Summer of 1994 the station was re-established operating the 52ft Arun class lifeboat Ralph and Bonella Farrant. The lifeboat and her new crew were called upon to perform their first service even before reaching her station - while on passage to Fenit from Poole, in June 1994, the broken down motor cruiser Mayfly was towed in to Salcombe in a light wind.

Plans for a further two new inshore lifeboat stations operating Atlantic rigid inflatables were announced during 1994, and both became operational during 1996. The new stations were at Kilrush, on the mouth of the Shannon, and in Galway Docks. Galway opened in March 1996 and answered over 20 calls during the first year of operation.

Most recently, two new further all-weather lifeboat stations have been opened, the first at Achill Island. The distance between the lifeboat stations at Ballyglass and the Aran Islands left a gap in the RNLI's declared commitment of cover and so a new station was needed.

Achill's lifeboat, the 44ft Waveney class lifeboat Helen Turnbull, became operational on 28 August 1996 following the usual period of crew training. The second was at Castletownbere, a small harbour town on the southern side of the Beara Peninsula, which was established during 1997.

The number of lifeboat stations covering Ireland's Atlantic coast in 1983 has considerably increased within less than a decade-and-a-half from the original three all-weather stations.

There are now seven all-weather and five inshore lifeboat stations to cover the coast.

the. ne.xv suuions Between the border with Northern Ireland and Mizen Head in Ireland's south west corner, eight lifeboat stations have been opened, or reopened in the ten years between 1986 and 1996. The following is a summary of the new stations with brief details of each, listed in geographical order from north to south. These stations have become a well established and vital element in rescue cover on the west coast of Ireland.

louoh svvilly co ooneo.U A standard D class inflatable was placed here in 1988 to cover Lough Swilly and the coastline west of Portrush. The station has been considerably up-graded since being opened and now operates both Atlantic 75 and D class ILBs. It is situated at Ned's Point Fort, one of several Forts built on the banks of Lough Swilly in the early 19th century, and the main town from where the crew are drawn is Buncrana. A large boathouse was completed in 1995 for the Atlantic and launching tractor.

BunooHAii co done.iiAl In 1994 an Atlantic 21 lifeboat was sent to Bundoran and replaced a boat that had been operated independently for a number of years by local people. The RNLI built a new lifeboat house on the site of the house used by this independent boat. The station's own lifeboat is an Atlantic 75 rigid-inflatable, Helene, which is launched by tractor.

BAllVCilASS CO ITtAVO Ballyglass was the first of the recent all-weather lifeboat stations to be established on the west coast, and now operates its own 52ft Arun class, Mabel Williams.

Ballyglass is a fjord-like inlet opening to the north into Broad Haven Bay, situated about four miles north of Belmullet town, one of the most remote villages in Ireland. A new crew facility was built in 1994 close to the lifeboat's moorings, and an old C class inflatable is used as the boarding boat.

Achill oo m.xyo This is the newest of the lifeboat stations on the west coast. It was opened in August 1996 when the Waveney class lifeboat Helen Turnbull, formerly stationed at Sheerness, was sent for a 12 month evaluation period. The lifeboat is moored in Achill Sound near the keep of a small 15th century tower house on the Atlantic Drive, just to the south of Kildavnet pier. The boarding boat is moored off the pier, and temporary Portacabins are used to store the crew's gear.

clifoen co C,AI VAV The RNLI decided to undertake evaluation trials with a C Class inflatable at Clifden during 1988. The station was situated at the quayside on the road to the beach and the ILB launched from several different sites along the Connemara coast. This is achieved by the use of a Land Rover and trailer to launch and recover the lifeboat. Crew members were drawn from a number of different areas, so as to maximise knowledge of the coastal area in which the lifeboat was to operate. The station is to be upgraded in 1997 to operate an Atlantic and D class inflatable, once a new boathouse has been constructed. The Atlantic will launch from Clifden only, and the D class from any of the approved launch sites in the locality.

C|. l '. V CO OAlSVAV The inshore lifeboat station at Galway based in the dock area of the city was established in March 1996. A temporary boathouse and crew store was placed on the quayside, and an electric davit was built for launching. A permanent boathouse was built during 1997 adjacent to the davit for housing the Atlantic 75 that the station will operate. The lifeboat provides inshore cover for a large area of Galway Bay, supplementing the existing Aran Islands station at Kilronan.

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One of the reasons for the expansion in lifeboat cover has been the increase in the amount of leisure traffic on the west coast, exemplified by the creation of a marina at Kilrush on the north side of the Shannon estuary. Although concerned local people had lobbied for a rescue service in the Shannon Estuary for many years, it was this increase in marine traffic, in and around the Shannon, that was one of the main reasons for establishment of the lifeboat station at Kilrush. The lifeboat house was built just outside the Marina lock and with easy access to the harbour's deep water approach channel, facing Scattery Island.

The station's Atlantic 75 lifeboat Rose West is launched by tractor.

feint co keRRy Fenit had an all weather lifeboat from 1879 until 1969 and covered Tralee Bay. In 1969 it was decided that the station should be closed, but in 1994 it was reopened and now provides essential cover for the area. The relief 52ft Arun class Ralph and Bonella Farrant was placed on temporary station duty on 19 August 1994. A new marina in the harbour is due to open in July 1997 at Fenit, and with the increased leisure traffic the Fenit lifeboat will have more demands made on it than ever.

CAsUetownneRe co c.OHk At a meeting on 17 April 1997 held in Craigies Hotel in Castletownbere, it was formally announced that a new all-weather lifeboat station will be established at the port. It is expected that the new station will be operational in October when the 52ft Arun class Roy and Barbara Harding, formerly on station at the Aran Islands, will be placed on station.

ARRAnniORC. ARAIl ISlAIIOS AI1O A l O I H IA The history of the three stations that were established before the 1980s is better documented and too long to be included in this account. However, when it is realised how many new stations have been opened, and how many services are now carried out on Ireland's west coast, it is possible to see the amount of rescue work carried out by the three original stations. Their area of operation was probably the toughest of any in the British Isles.

otheR stAtions Not only have the places listed above all recently been established as lifeboat stations, several other stations in Ireland have also either been newly established or reopened. D class inflatable I IBs have become part of the cover at Portrush, Newcastle, Dun Laoghaire and Wicklow stations that already had an all weather lifeboat capability.

In Northern Ireland, new stations were established at Kilkeel in 1986 with an Atlantic 21, and at Larne in 1994 with a standard D class inflatable. In 1996, a 44ft Waveney was sent to Larne and the station now has all-weather capability. At Courtown in the Republic, the station was re-established and operates a D class inflatable housed in the old lifeboat house.

Most recently, both Fethard and Helvick Head, on the south-east coast of Eire, have been reestablished as inshore lifeboat stations..