WHITSTABLE
LIFEBOAT
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LATEST NEWS AND EVENTS
Whitstable lifeboat crew receives second award for rescue of a yacht crew
The Whitstable Atlantic 75 will be given the Walter and Elizabeth Groombridge Award to mark the crew’s performance on 4 September 2009 when they launched in rough seas to rescue a couple from a yacht. This is the second award in recognition of the crew’s role in the dramatic rescue. The yacht’s skipper was washed overboard and he was tethered by lifelines while his wife remained on the yacht. The skipper was unable to get back onto his yacht Esprit and Whitstable’s inshore lifeboat launched in a force 7 wind. Helmsman Jonathan Carter had to avoid crushing the man between the lifeboat and the yacht while Tony Martin, a lifeboat crew member, was transferred onboard the yacht. The skipper required urgent hospital treatment. He was wrapped in a thermal pouch, given oxygen, and the lifeboat brought him to shore, leaving his wife and yacht at sea. The Whitstable lifeboat launched again to take the woman off the yacht, and the Sheerness Trent class lifeboat towed in the yacht. The RNLI was involved in the emergency for five hours. Mike Judge, the Lifeboat Operations Manager at Whitstable, said: ‘No one is in the RNLI to get an award. That is not why they turn out of their beds in the middle of the night or down tools during the day and run down the street. ‘That is the last thing on their mind. However, when the dust has settled after a very intense period of pressure on a shout, it is nice to reflect and to be recognised for that work. Jonathan has already been accorded the Thanks of the Institution on Vellum, the fourth most senior award in the RNLI, for his role. Crew members Tony Martin, Henry Thomson and Martin Easton received a Vellum Service Certificate and Mike received a letter of appreciation. The Walter and Elizabeth Groombridge Award was established in 1988 to be made for the most meritorious service performed by the crew of an Atlantic 21, a lifeboat now superseded by newer models. The Award comprises a pair of inscribed binoculars for Jonathan, framed certificates for each member of crew involved in the service, and a certificate for display in the boathouse.
I Consider Myself Lucky!
Dr Tony Hayes (59) a former head teacher and now an educational consultant from Sidcup was onboard the 35ft yacht Spitfire in the Swale and heading for Queenborough on the Isle of Sheppey when his problems began. Dr Hayes takes up the story "I am a complete beginner at sailing but besides the yacht’s skipper there were three other crew onboard - two young men taking their RYA Yachtmaster course and a lady refreshing her sailing knowledge. We were heading up the Swale when I experienced severe chest pains" "The others on the yacht were all
experienced and knew exactly what to do. The skipper, Damian Belton, reacted
quickly, took one look and called Thames Coastguard reporting that he had a ‘heart
attack’ victim onboard. That kicked everything off. The coastguard contacted
the RNLI station at Whitstable and the RAF Air Sea Rescue helicopter". Whitstable’s Atlantic 75 Lifeboat Oxford Town and Gown was launched at 3.18 pm with Helmsman Richard Judge, accompanied by John Croft and Kellie Litchfield as crew, and were alongside the yacht just off Harty Ferry ten minutes later. Dr Hayes continued "The lifeboat arrived very quickly and I was given oxygen. The lifeboat headed for the shore where I believe they were to link with an ambulance. However, the RAF Sea King arrived and I was transferred to the helicopter and taken to William Harvey Hospital in Ashford, which has a specialist cardiac care unit. Doctors and nurses from the hospital were waiting for me and took me from the aircraft, just a hundred yards to the hospital entrance" "A major artery feeding blood to my heart muscle was completely blocked, causing the intense pain. The surgeon carried out an angioplasty procedure where a balloon and stent is inserted into my arm and travels to the blockage in my heart. The balloon is expanded and removed, which increased the blood flow to 100% and immediately stopped the pain. I have had another procedure since then to clear two other arteries that were partly blocked". Whitstable Lifeboat Helmsman Richard Judge said "When we arrived alongside the Spitfire John Croft went aboard to assist the casualty and confirmed he was having severe chest pains with all the symptoms of a heart attack". "Dr Hayes was put on oxygen as soon as possible and the initial intention was to transfer him to an ambulance on shore on the mainland side of the Swale". "When we realised the RAF would soon be with us we decided that evacuation by the helicopter would be the fastest route to hospital. Whilst the helicopter was still on route we transferred the casualty to the lifeboat, as conditions in the east north east force 5-6 winds were quite choppy and a transfer direct from the yacht would be difficult". "We took the lifeboat to clear water and put out the sea anchor then carried out a ‘static’ winch whereby the helicopter comes to the lifeboat rather than the lifeboat manoeuvres to the helicopter’s position". Richard Judge continued "The crew of the yacht had done well; they had made a note of his medical history and gathered together his medications, which we handed to the helicopter winch man, and the first aid training that we undertake at Whitstable Lifeboat station helped us deal with this situation". Flt Lt Jean-Marc David, Pilot of the RAF’s Sea King said "we received the call at 3.15pm and were on scene twenty-five minutes later. We were impressed by the lifeboat helmsman’s suggestion to remove the casualty onto the lifeboat to facilitate the winching and elected to use the double strop to save time"."Once onboard the helicopter he received 300 mg of Asprin, the oxygen was continued and he was monitored by ECG throughout the flight. We arrived at the William Harvey Hospital in Ashford at 4.00pm where a crash team were waiting by the apron to take the casualty straight into the hospital. Dr Hayes was at pains to remark that the helicopter winch man Sgt Lee Clark did not leave his side until he went through the doors to theatre which he found very reassuring and not a little impressive!" Whitstable Lifeboat’s Medical Advisor Dr Terry Stefani said "This rescue highlights the value of local knowledge from Mike Judge, the Lifeboat Operations Manager, the quick thinking from Richard Judge the duty helmsman in anticipating the need to transfer the casualty from the lifeboat rather than the casualty vessel, the prompt response from the helicopter crew, continuous medical attention throughout, and excellent communication with the receiving hospital so that they were prepared to ship the casualty directly into theatre". "In truth this was a textbook example of the emergency services working together in offering a seamless, rapid and first class response to a medical emergency". Dr Hayes’ family - his wife Lynne, daughters Victoria and Penny, and grandchildren Sophie (seven) and Joe (six) are all very relieved at the satisfactory outcome of his predicament. Said Lynne "The incident has not diminished his enthusiasm to learn sailing; he loved it and spent most of his time in hospital talking about it!" Dr Hayes’ daughter, Penny Dent said "The speed in which the lifeboat and helicopter came to his rescue was unbelievable, and this along with the first aid treatment given to him, helped save his life and he is now recovering well, my family are so grateful to all those involved". Dr Hayes, who was speaking at home after the incident, said "This rapid and well co-ordinated response ensured that from the moment I experienced the pain to lying on the operating theatre took less than an hour. This meant that the damage to my heart was minimal. ‘Time equals muscle’, they say. They also talked of the ‘chain of survival’ and that I was very fortunate that all the links in my rescue were so efficient and effective. I wish to express my gratitude to all those who took part in the operation that day and I consider myself very lucky".
Dunkirk Little Ship towed by Whitstable Lifeboat A 40-foot open motor boat, the Fermain V, a veteran of the Dunkirk evacuation, was towed into Whitstable Harbour by the Whitstable RNLI Lifeboat on Wednesday afternoon. The vessel had broken down in the Swale just west of Harty Ferry with four occupants onboard whilst on passage from Conyer Creek to Ramsgate to join this week’s 70th anniversary of the Dunkirk evacuation. On board the 1926-built vessel was Mr Terry Radmore, father of the boat’s owner and three friends, Mr Ian Howe, Mr Greg McLeish and Mr Chris Zoeller. Said Mr Radmore who comes from Halverton in Devon "We were coming down the Swale when the engine stopped just upstream of Faversham Creek, probably with an overheating problem. We had left Conyer Creek earlier and were making our way to Ramsgate for the Dunkirk anniversary. The Fermain V had been used to ferry troops from the shore to the waiting larger vessels and on its last trip had been machine gunned by an aircraft. It made its way back to Ramsgate but later sank in the harbour but was refloated". Whitstable Lifeboat was launched at 1.30 pm and, crewed by Helmsman Richard Judge with Mike Keam and Mark Laming, located the Fermain at anchor a ½-mile west of Harty Ferry. The vessel was taken under tow arriving in Whitstable Harbour at 2.40pm where they were met by a lifeboat shore party and the Herne Bay Coastguard. After repairs to the craft, Mr Radmore and his party hoped to continue on their way to the Dunkirk anniversary. For lifeboat crewmember Mark Laming it will be an incident to remember as his grandfather Jack, was a Dunkirk Veteran. This was the 15th call of the year for Whitstable’s volunteer lifeboat crews.
Model Boats and Ships on Display in Lifeboat House
On display were be model boats and ships ranging from sailing barges, trawlers, lifeboats, merchant ships and warships. All were the result of hours if not months or perhaps years of painstaking work by members of the club which is based in Herne Bay. Treasurer of the Heron Model Boat Club Patrick Roach said “Today at the lifeboat station we had had 55 model boats and ships on display, the work of around 15 of our members and the day went very well indeed with many people particularly families visiting our exhibition and we have raised £182.00 for lifeboat funds” The Heron Model Boat Club has 65 members from all walks of life and meets on Wednesdays and Sundays at the pond in the Memorial Park, Herne Bay and once a month at the Herne Bay Yacht Club. The club is always on the lookout for new members and anyone interested is invited to contact their Chairman, Mike Barnard on 01227 281495. The exhibition in conjunction with the Whitstable branch of the RNLI has been an annual event at the lifeboat station for many years attracting people of all ages who come to admire the handiwork of the model boat club members.
Lord Mayor Visits Whitstable Lifeboat Station
Said Cllr Cragg “As I we are coming to the end of our year in office we felt we wanted to go round and thank the emergency services for what they do for the community” “We are pleased to have been able to come and meet the station’s volunteers and thank them for the great service and support they give and to see the lifeboat launch on an exercise”
Jim Keeps Audience Enthralled With Stories of Life in Sailing Barges.
Jim, now 75, had a fascination for the craft from his childhood days in the Colchester area and started his career in sailing barges during the war years at the age of 15 when he joined the barge ‘Gladys’ as the third hand. Jim related many of his adventures starting from his childhood days when he and friends made miniature barges from old aircraft auxiliary fuel tanks found on dumps and sailed in them around the Essex backwaters near their homes. He told the audience of excitement at joining the barge Gladys on leaving school and how his first job was to climb to the top mast to fix a new house flag. He spoke with affection for many of the barge skippers and mates he found himself with and of their skill in sailing the heavily laden craft around the Thames Estuary laden with cargoes of grain or timber. He learnt a lot from these men which stood him in good stead for the time when he himself would take command of a barge. He related stories of numerous incidents both humorous an d serious. On one occasion he had set about painting a barge the skipper of which, was very particular about any paint spots on his deck. He told Jim that he would find some rags in a bag he had left on a hatch. Jim had the misfortune to spill a quantity of paint had hurried of to collect the said rags. Unfortunately mistook the skippers clean underwear for the rags! On another trip he told of sailing a barge down the Thames in wartime and in smog. Sailing ‘blind’ the skill employed by the skipper could only be marvelled at but disaster nearly struck when the barges anchor got caught on a cable by on of the bridges over the river, with great skill the skipper, Jim and the barge escaped disaster. So numerous were Jims stories about his adventures that his talk only related to his early years, “I have four talks which I give” he said, and over a period of about two hours he only reached his 19th birthday when at this young age he got to be a skipper in his own right. Jim realised that he had started his career in the last years of barges trading under sail but never-the-less went on to sail in several barges before they ceased trading in the early sixties. He went on to sail many of the surviving barges in leisure market taking parties and groups to sea including on many occasions members of the Whitstable Yacht Club many of who where present on Saturday evening to renew their acquaintance with Jim. In later years Jim started a sailmaking business in Brightlingsea making gear for yachts and the remaining sailing barges, a business now continued by his daughter. He continues to still be active with barges and still sails in the barge Marjorie. The evening raised £484 for RNLI funds.
Easter Fair Boosts Lifeboat Funds
Diane Lamberton, Chairman of the Whitstable Branch of the RNLI said “this was a very good result, £884 was made from the fair itself which was reasonably busy over the two hours it was open and the remainder came from sales in the souvenir shop after the fair had closed”
Whitstable Lifeboat Station held an open morning on Sunday 28th February for teachers representing several local schools in a pioneering move aimed at increasing the awareness of the lifeboat and the RNLI amongst children and providing an educational resource into the bargain. Organised by David Hayward, Whitstable Lifeboats Visits Officer and former Head of Hampton School in Herne Bay several teachers braved the wet and windy weather to visit the lifeboat station and hear from members of the lifeboat crew and station about the work of the RNLI in Whitstable, the running of the station and all the behind the scenes activity and fund raising that supports what is one of the busiest lifeboat stations on the Kent Coast. Speaking afterwards David Hayward said “It all went pretty well given the appalling weather and we had representatives from St Nicholas Infant School in Strood, Whitstable’s Joy Lane Primary and St Mary’s Schools , Hampton School in Herne Bay and Parkside School in Canterbury who heard about the various educational resources we can offer here at the station”. “The crew spent time talking to everybody as a group and individually and RNLI Education Manager for the South East Tatti McNally was on hand to talk about various RNLI educational services and resources that are on offer from the RNLI regionally”. “Also present was Tom Hawkins the City Council’s Foreshore Officer who is involved with visits to the harbour and foreshore and it is our aim to work together to offer a ‘joined up’ educational resource”. “We held the event at this time because hopefully we can encourage more schools to visit this spring and summer and already the St Nicholas School have booked a visit. Many local schools have visited the station over the years and hopefully we can encourage more schools from further afield to visit or take advantage of RNLI educational resources. “The morning was certainly a first for Whitstable Lifeboat Station and possibly for the RNLI and it is a move that could be repeated elsewhere. My only disappointment is that given the weather conditions, we were unable to launch the lifeboat. Any other teachers or schools who feel they would like to take advantage of what we can offer are invited to contact me on 01227 264489 or through the station’s web-site www.whitstablelifeboat.org.uk”.
Anglers ‘sponsored dip’ lands catch for lifeboat When the hardy souls at Herne Bay Angling Association dived into the sea just before Christmas they were hoping that their efforts would raise a good sum for the Whitstable lifeboat and their efforts came to fruition when their President Roger Greenin handed over a cheque for £1752 to members of the lifeboat station. “We have been long time
supporters for the Whitstable Lifeboat because you never know when we might need
them and 13 swimmers, some in Nicki Orton who organised the swim added “This is the third year we have taken the plunge and as with the previous two years last Decembers dip has been well supported so it is now a regular event!” Diane Lamberton, Chairman of the Whitstable Branch of the RNLI said “This has been a magnificent effort by the Herne Bay Angling Association and I can only admire their courage in taking a dip in December especially given how cold this winter has been. On behalf of the station I thank them for their contribution and wish them all a safe 2010”.
First
Call of the Year for Whitstable Lifeboat
The
three occupants of a broken down angling boat were pleased to see the Whitstable
Lifeboat when their craft suffered engine failure whilst fishing off Herne Bay
on Thursday evening. The
trio, boat owner Dennis Tregaskes accompanied by John Chapman and 11-year old
Lorne Chapman had set of from Herne Bay earlier in the day but their craft
developed engine problems when they began their return to shore. Said
Mr Tregaskes “I was pleased that my radio was working and we were very glad to
see the lifeboat arrive. Lorne was a bit nervous and wanted to get home but it
is an adventure he can now tell his friends about” This
was the first call of the year for Whitstable’s volunteer lifeboat crew.
Helmsman Dave Parry accompanied by crewmembers Tony Martin and Martin Easton
said afterwards “We located the 22-foot vessel in the Kentish Flats windfarm .
Due to the low water we took the craft to a mooring off the Neptune Jetty before
transferring the three to the lifeboat and bringing them ashore at the Neptune
Ramp. The lifeboat then returned to station where the lifeboat was recovered and
serviced ready for its next call by the stations launchers and shore helpers”.
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Copyright © D. Parry/Whitstable Lifeboat 2003 - 2010. All rights reserved. All of the photographs on this site were taken by Chris Davey, Dave Parry and members of Whitstable Lifeboat Crew, and are protected by copyright
Contact the webmaster: Dave Parry
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