Former casualties turned Fundraisers present cheque to their rescuers
On 12 April, the second anniversary of their rescue, Jared Colclough, Dan Morton and Richard Smith returned to Exmouth lifeboat station to hand over a cheque and to thank Crew volunteers who saved their lives.
It was two years since their powerboat ran out of fuel and started taking on water near Straight Point. In the short time it took Shannon class lifeboat R and J Welburn to arrive on scene, the group of four young men were all in the water with only one lifejacket between them. Their body temperatures had dropped rapidly, especially Jared’s 12 year-old cousin, Dan who was treated immediately by Paramedics.
Over the last two years, Jared with his family and friends have been actively fundraising and raising awareness of the charity’s Respect the Water campaign. By visiting events in the south west in their converted camper van, they tell their personal story hoping to encourage others to suitably equip themselves when taking to the water.
Jared, Dan and Rich handed over £550 from donations raised over the last year. Jared stressed to the volunteers that they’ll continue to raise money for the charity that saves lives at sea:
‘I’m thankful every day to the RNLI for saving our lives – no amount of funds raised can equal what the Crew volunteers did for us that day, but I’ll do what I can to achieve it.’
Volunteers from Exmouth lifeboat station set up a community safety stall to speak to members of the public and sold refreshments to raise more money on the day of the cheque presentation.
Notes to Editors
Details about our charity’s Respect the Water campaign can be read here:
https://rnli.org/safety/respect-the-water
Photos:
PR190417 Cheque presentation.
(left to right: Crew volunteers Charlie Allen and Roger Moore; Dan Morton and Jared Colclough; Coxswain, Steve Hockings-Thompson; Second Coxswain, Scott Ranft; Crew volunteers, Tommo Thompson and Harry Griffin.)
PR190417 Richard Smith, Jared Colclough and Dan Morton with their RNLI camper van, Oscar Charlie.
For more information please telephone Emma Tarling, Exmouth RNLI Volunteer Lifeboat Press Officer on 07837 810082 or email: [email protected].
Key facts about the RNLI
The RNLI charity saves lives at sea. Its volunteers provide a 24-hour search and rescue service around the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland coasts. The RNLI operates 238 lifeboat stations in the UK and Ireland and more than 240 lifeguard units on beaches around the UK and Channel Islands. The RNLI is independent of Coastguard and government and depends on voluntary donations and legacies to maintain its rescue service. Since the RNLI was founded in 1824, its lifeboat crews and lifeguards have saved over 146,000 lives.
Learn more about the RNLI
For more information please visit the RNLI website or Facebook, X, TikTok and YouTube. News releases, videos and photos are available on the News Centre.
Contacting the RNLI - public enquiries
Members of the public may contact the RNLI on 0300 300 9990 (UK) or 1800 991802 (Ireland) or by email.