Aerial photo looking down on an RNLI D class lifeboat as it breaks through a wave on an overcast day

2024: RNLI rescue compilation

Friday 3 January 2025

Watch our video compilation to see just some of the rescues your support made possible in 2024

2024 saw the RNLI commemorate 200 years of saving lives at sea. While the charity held events to celebrate the milestone, the vital work of the RNLI continued. Across 238 lifeboat stations and 239 lifeguarded beaches, RNLI lifesavers launched to rescue those in danger at sea.

Watch our compilation video below for a look at just a few of the many rescues that the RNLI carried out in 2024:

One of the rescues featured in the video took place at Dun Laoghaire, where a child swept out to sea by rolling waves was rescued by the fearless lifeboat crew. Read more about that incredible rescue: Watch the moment a girl’s life is saved.

An RNLI inshore D class lifeboat in rough seas with three crew aboard, two lean out to reach for a child in the water on the port side of the lifeboat

'My phone was my only lifeline, and I was quite calm because I had it. If I didn’t it would have been a very different story.’ These are the words of Carl Sawyer, who was rescued by Exmouth lifeboat crew back in June. He is just one of the many whose lives were touched by the RNLI in 2024. You can read more about how he was saved and watch more footage from his rescue below.

Not all rescues are caught on camera. When Dundee-based RNLI Lifeguard Callum McDonald spent a few days away surfing in July, he wasn’t expecting to have to put his lifesaving training into practice. But when he saw two young children caught in a rip current on an empty beach, all of his skills kicked into gear. Read Callum’s dramatic retelling of his story.

A head and shoulders photo of RNLI Lifeguard Callum Mcdonald, a white man with light brown hair, looking straight to camera with the sea in the distance. He is wearing a yellow lifeguard polo shirt and carries a yellow rescue float over his shoulder and a VHF radio and whistle strapped to his chest. — Surfer and off-duty RNLI Lifeguard Callum McDonald was visiting the Thurso area when his lifesaving skills were needed

Thank you for all your support in 2024. Your kindness is behind every rescue we do. With you by our side, as we launch into our third century, we will do all we can to save every one.

If you would like to show your continued support for the RNLI, why not become a member? Not only will you be helping RNLI lifesavers launch to the rescue, but you’ll receive an exclusive membership pack and a copy of our Lifeboat magazine sent to you four times year, each issue filled with thrilling rescue stories and features. Find out how you can join our lifesaving family by visiting our membership pages today.