LIFEBOAT MAGAZINE ARCHIVE

Advanced search

July

Launches 35 Lives rescued 8 JULY 8TH. - WALMER, KENT. At 7.46 in the morning the Deal coastguard reported that a four-engined bombing aeroplane, belonging to the R.A.F., had crashed in the sea about two and three-quarter miles east of the life-boat station. A light southsouth- west wind was blowing, but the sea was smooth. The motor life-boat Charles Dibdin (Civil Service No. 2) was launched at 7.52 and found the remains of the aeroplane on fire, but no survivors. She picked up some gear and made a further search, examining old wrecks on the Goodwins, but found nothing and arrived back on her station at 10.10. - Rewards, £10 12s. 6d.

JULY 9TH. - PORTRUSH, CO. ANTRIM.

The motor life-boat T.B.R.H. was launched at 2.10 in the afternoon at the request of the naval officer in charge, Londonderry, to go to the help of a small rowing boat of Nagilligan, which was drifting towards Downhill.

A moderate south-west wind was blowing, with a moderate sea. The small boat was found west-by-north of Ramore Head.

She had two cadets on board. The life-boat had arrived just in time, as one had collapsed and the other was much alarmed at his position. She took them and their boat to Portmuck, and reached her station again at 4.30. - Rewards, £5 1s.

JULY 9TH. - LYTHAM-ST. ANNES, LANCASHIRE.

At 1.55 in the afternoon the Preston Corporation house barge telephoned that a vessel had signalled to them that a boat was in distress on the north side of the river, near Wall End Buoy. A moderate southsouth- east gale was blowing, with a rough sea.

The motor life-boat Dunleary was launched at 2.20, with her boarding boat in tow, and found the boat in distress to be the motor fishing vessel Gipsy, with a crew of five. Her anchor had dragged and she had been driven on to Salters Bank on the north side of the river and been severely battered. After putting two life-boatmen aboard the life-boat towed the Gipsy into Lytham, arriving at four o’clock. The Gipsy was a converted life-boat of the Institution and it was thought that had she been an ordinary fishing boat she would have broken up in a short time.The news of the accident reached the Llandudno life-boat station at 8.41 and the motor life-boat Thomas and Annie Wade Richards was launched at 9.30. She spoke an R.A.F.

sea rescue boat, which had picked up one survivor, and the boat asked her to carry on the search and then made for Beaumaris.

After searching for about an hour the lifeboat called at Rhyl at 11.35, and learning there that all the men had been picked up, she returned to her station, arriving at 1.15 next morning. - Rewards, Rhyl, £13 8s. ; Two of the rescued men sent a letter of thanks and a donation. - Rewards, £5 16s. 6d.

JULY 10TH. - SHOREHAM HARBOUR, SUSSEX. At 1.55 in the afternoon a message was received from the coastguard that a landing craft had broken down six miles south-south west of Shoreham Harbour.

A strong south-west wind was blowing, with a heavy swell. A second message said that the landing craft was going on her way.

After consultation with the naval authorities the life-boat honorary secretary decided to send out the motor life-boat Rosa Woodd and Phyllis Lunn, and she left at 3.14. She found the landing craft and remained with her till a tug came and towed her into harbour at 5.45. - Rewards, £4 8s. 6d.

JULY 10TH. - LYTHAM-ST. ANNES, LANCASHIRE.

While on her way to a shipyard at Freckleton the Hoylake motor life-boat was delayed by an engine breakdown. She was due off Lytham at three in the afternoon, but did not arrive until 4.30, having travelled under sail for the last ten miles.

A very heavy gale was blowing, and as she could not be left without proper moorings in the gale, and could not continue her voyage under sail alone, the Lytham-St. Annes motor life-boat Dunleary was launched at 4.45, with Mr. Fergus Dearden, the Lytham- St. Annes honorary secretary, on board. He went on board the Hoylake life-boat and the Lytham-St. Annes life-boat towed her to the entrance of Freckleton Pool. The Lytham- St. Annes life-boat then returned, reaching her station again at seven that evening, while Mr. Dearden and one of the Lytham- St. Annes crew piloted the Hoylake life-boat to the shipyard. - Rewards, £2 12s. 6d.

JULY 17TH. - RHYL, FLINTSHIRE, AND LLANDUDNO, CAERNARVONSHIRE. At eight o’clock in the evening the Rhyl life-boat station was told that an Anson aeroplane had come down in the sea seven miles to the north-west, and that Botha aeroplanes and a speed boat were searching for it. The weather was fine and the sea calm. At 9.23 the Rhyl motor life-boat The Gordon Warren was launched, and reached the position given about ten o’clock. As she did so the fishing boat Hard Lines picked up three airmen.

One of the three was dead, and one unconscious. The life-boat took the unconscious man aboard, and her crew gave him artificial respiration and signalled for a doctor to be waiting when she put back to Rhyl.

She landed the man at 10.25 and he was taken to hospital, where he recovered.The news of the accident reached the Llandudno life-boat station at 8.41 and the motor life-boat Thomas and Annie Wade Richards was launched at 9.30. She spoke an R.A.F.

sea rescue boat, which had picked up one survivor, and the boat asked her to carry on the search and then made for Beaumaris.

After searching for about an hour the lifeboat called at Rhyl at 11.35, and learning there that all the men had been picked up, she returned to her station, arriving at 1.15 next morning. - Rewards, Rhyl, £13 8s. ;Llandudno, £18 5s. 6d. (See Rhyl, “Services by Shore-boats,” page 61.)

JULY 25TH. - SKEGNESS, LINCOLNSHIRE.

At 4.40 in the morning, a message was received from the coastguard that it was thought that a Lancaster aeroplane was down in the sea about six miles from Anderby Creek. A light southerly wind was blowing and the sea was calm. The aeroplane could be seen blazing when the motor life-boat Anne Allen was launched at 5.28. About eight miles from Skegness Pier, she found wreckage and searched a wide area, but found no men. One body was picked up by an R.A.F. launch. The life-boat picked up parachutes, caps, boots, and other things, and handed them to the air authorities when she arrived back at ten o’clock - Rewards, £10 19s. 9d.

JULY 26TH. - TOBERMORY, ARGYLLSHIRE.

A lady doctor, a visitor on holiday, developed acute appendicitis. An immediate operation was necessary. No other boat was available and the local doctor asked the life-boat to take her to the mainland. The sea was calm, with a light south-west wind.

The motor life-boat Sir Arthur Rose left her moorings at 10.40 and took the patient, on a stretcher, and a nurse to Oban, which was reached at 2.30 next morning. The life-boat arrived back at six o’clock. A donation was received to cover the expenses. - Rewards, £5.

JULY 27TH. - DUNGENESS, KENT. At 2.25 in the morning the coastguard reported that shouts had been heard off Dungeness Point by a coastal battery. Later the lifeboat was asked to put out by the Royal Naval shore signal station, and at 4.15 the motor life-boat Charles Cooper Henderson was launched. The sea was moderate, with a freshening west-south-west wind. The lifeboat found the American steamer Fort Perrot at anchor two miles east-north-east of Dungeness.

The steamer, which had been in convoy, was on fire, presumably from enemy action, and was at anchor. Her captain said that he had four injured men on board and asked the life-boat to take them ashore to hospital. This the life-boat did and returned to the Fort Perrot and stood by until other help reached her. She then returned to her station, arriving at 6.45. The service was carried out under a continuous barrage and the life-boatmen and helpers had no cover.- Rewards, £28 2s. 3d.

JULY 27TH - 28TH. - PORTPATRICK, WIGTOWNSHIRE. Shortly after six in the evening the coastguard telephoned that an aeroplane had crashed on the foreshore at Cairngarrock Bay. The weather was fine, with a slight north-north-west breeze and a calm sea. The motor life-boat Jeanie Speirs was launched at 6.25 and, with her boarding boat in tow and the honorary secretary, Mr.

James Welsh, on board, she left for Cairngarrock Bay. There she found that a Dakota air ambulance, bound from France for Prestwick on her way to America, had struck the cliffs, only forty feet high, as she came in from the sea. She had twenty-two persons on board, including American wounded soldiers and two nurses. The foreshore was littered with their bodies. Only one man was still alive. The life-boat called by wireless for a doctor and her crew made every effort to succour the man, but he died. The scene of the accident was inaccessible by land, and it was decided to attempt to remove the bodies by sea. The life-boat returned to her station at 10.45 to collect rubber dinghies and other equipment, but owing to the darkness and fog it was decided to attempt no more that night. On the following day the life-boat, in two more trips, carried the twenty-two bodies to Portpatrick.

Leaving at 1.30 in the afternoon on the first trip she returned at 5.15, and leaving again at 5.45 she finally returned at 8.15 that evening.

The R.A.F. expressed its thanks for the efficient way in which everything had been done. - Rewards, £22 5s. 6d.

JULY 29TH. - CROMER, NORFOLK. At 8.32 in the morning the Cromer coastguard reported that an aeroplane had crashed in flames four miles south-east-by-east of Cromer. A light southerly wind was blowing, with a smooth sea. The No. 1 motor lifeboat H. F. Bailey was launched at 8.40. She reached the scene of the accident to find her own coxswain there. He was out in his fishing boat and had gone to the rescue.

Other vessels were also there, and picked up two bodies. The life-boat searched, but only found some gear. She reached her station again at 2.30 that afternoon. - Rewards, £6 6s.

JULY 29TH. - HASTINGS, SUSSEX. At 11.23 in the morning the Fairlight coastguard reported that a Mustang aeroplane had come down in the sea two and a half miles from Hastings. A light south-west wind was blowing, with a slight sea. The motor lifeboat Cyril and Lilian Bishop was launched at 11.33. She picked up two oxygen cylinders and saw a large patch of oil, but found no survivors. Two local fishing boats which were at sea had also gone to the rescue. The life-boat arrived back at her station at 12.18 that afternoon. - Rewards, £19 12s. 9d. (See Hastings, “Services by Shore-boats,” page 61.)

JULY 31ST. - ARBROATH, ANGUS. At 9.30 in the morning a message was received from the coastguard asking that the life-boat should go to a position thirteen miles southeast by east of Arbroath, in answer to a ship’s SOS. The weather was foggy and the sea calm. At 9.45 the motor life-boat John and William Mudie was launched and reached the position about 12.45. She searched for three hours and then picked up an empty boat belonging to the Aberdeen t r a w l e r B r a c k e n B u r n . She towed it to Arbroath, arriving at 4.30 that afternoon.- Rewards, £7 1s.The following life-boats were launched, but no services were rendered for the reasons given : JULY 3RD. - SHERINGHAM, NORFOLK.

A parachute with something attached had been seen to fall into the sea, but the life-boat was recalled as it was thought certain that no person was attached to the parachute and that the object, if found, might be dangerous to handle. - Rewards, £16 13s. 6d.

JULY 4TH. - THURSO, CAITHNESSSHIRE.

A steam trawler had gone ashore, but got off without help from the life-boat.

- Rewards, £4 17s.

JULY 7TH. - FLAMBOROUGH, YORKSHIRE.

A man had fallen over the Bempton Cliffs, but he was hauled up the cliff face by ropes. - Rewards, £8 12s.

JULY 9TH. - NEWHAVEN, SUSSEX. An object, which looked like a raft with someone on board, was reported, but only a buoy was found. - Rewards, £13 9s. 6d.

JULY 10TH. - SHERINGHAM, NORFOLK.

A Beaufighter aeroplane had nosedived into the sea, but no survivors were found. - Rewards, £16 13s. 6d.

JULY 13TH. - SKEGNESS, LINCOLNSHIRE.

Airmen were thought to have baled out from an aeroplane, but no one was found. - Rewards, £6 15s.

JULY 13TH. - PORTRUSH, CO. ANTRIM.

A burning aeroplane had been reported several miles north of Inistrahull, but nothing could be found. - Rewards, £8 17s. (See Malin Head, “Services by Auxiliary Rescueboats,” page 68.)

JULY 14TH. - LLANDUDNO, CAERNARVONSHIRE.

An aeroplane had been reported down in the sea, but nothing could be found. - Rewards, £9 10s. 6d.

JULY 19TH. - CROMER, NORFOLK. A flashing light had been seen, but only a calcium flare was found. - Rewards, £17 4s. 6d.

JULY 21ST. - BRIDLINGTON, YORKSHIRE.

A light had been reported, but nothing was found and later a flashing buoy was washed up. - Rewards, £22 10s.

JULY 21ST. - SKEGNESS, LINCOLNSHIRE.

During the evening of the 20th the life-boat crew were assembled as an aeroplane had been reported down in the sea, but the call was cancelled. Later flashes were reported and the life-boat was launched at 12.35 next morning. She came under fire, as military exercises were going on, returned and informed the authorities and then went out again to search, but found nothing. - Rewards, £25 0s. 6d.

JULY 24TH. - RHYL, FLINTSHIRE. A Spitfire aeroplane had crashed in the sea, but disappeared without leaving any trace.Rewards, £9 6s. (See Llancrchynmor. “Services by Auxiliary Rescue-boats,” page 68.)

JULY 25TH. - PORTHDINLLAEN, CAERNARVONSHIRE.

A motor torpedo boat had been reported in distress off Bardsey Island, but before the life-boat could reach the position she was recalled by wireless as the boat was safe. - Rewards, £8 5s. 6d.

JULY 25TH. - CLACTON - ON - SEA, ESSEX.

An aeroplane had come down in the sea, but only traces of oil could be found- Rewards, £9 1s.

JULY 27TH. - CAMPBELTOWN, ARGYLLSHIRE.

The Belgian salvage vessel Zeehond had gone ashore, but she got off without the help of the life-boat. - Rewards, £6 13s.

JULY 27TH. - SELSEY, SUSSEX. An aeroplane had been reported down in the sea, but nothing could be found. - Rewards, £11 4s. 6d.

JULY 28TH. - TORBAY, DEVON. Three boys had drifted away in a small boat, but a man swam out and pushed the boat ashore.

Rewards, £4 12s.

JULY 28TH. - CROMER, NORFOLK. A Mosquito aeroplane had crashed near the shore at Bacton. The life-boat found only wreckage, but two bodies were recovered by the police. - Rewards, £3 18s.

JULY 31ST. - PORTHDINLLAEN, CAERNARVONSHIRE.

Black objects resembling rubber dinghies had been reported, but nothing could be found. - Rewards, £11 12s.