Boats and Planes Keep Rhyl RNLI Busy Over The Bank Holiday

It was an early start on Saturday for the volunteers at Rhyl RNLI. The crew members were in charge of placing the buoys that marked the display line for the Rhyl Air Show. Later in the morning, the All Weather Lifeboat 'Lil Cunningham' was opened to the public for tours until the beginning of the flight displays, when the boat was then put on the beach in case of an emergency.

On Sunday afternoon, the second day of the air show, at 12:30pm the public tours of the boat had to be cut short when HM Coastguard requested the All Weather Lifeboat launched to the aid of a broken down fishing boat 13 miles North of Rhyl. The Lifeboat launched within minutes and was on scene an hour later to take the vessel under tow back to its launch site in Prestatyn. Meanwhile, the Inshore Lifeboat 'Mary Maxwell' launched twice to advise vessels of the safety exclusion zone for the air show. The All Weather Lifeboat returned back to Rhyl at 3:45pm and was recovered in time for the RAF Red Arrows Display.

Meanwhile, during the weekend a small army of volunteer fundraisers were busy raising money for the RNLI and collecting towards Rhyl's new £2.2 Million All Weather Shannon Class Lifeboat.

Paul Frost, Acting Coxswain, said 'The Rhyl Air Show weekend was extremely busy for the whole RNLI team at Rhyl. The volunteer crews, RNLI Lifeguards, Coastguards and all the other emergency services worked tirelessly all weekend to keep everyone safe. Our fundraisers made a fantastic effort collecting towards our new boat. I would like to thank all the extra people who came forward to collect during the weekend'.

Key facts about the RNLI

The RNLI is the charity that 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 146,700 lives.

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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.