Six shouts in five days for Teddington RNLI

The number of shouts over a holiday period has really tested the resources and energy levels of the whole of the station but we would not want it any other way.

According to helm Jon Chapman, summing up the week on behalf of the Teddington RNLI Lifeboat station:

‘It’s been pretty hectic recently down here at the end of the tidal Thames , to say the least. The river has been running ridiculously fast, at winter flood rates, so conditions have been challenging but it’s been particularly heartening to see our newer recruits, many of whom have been heavily involved both as shore and boat crew, putting all their training to great effect and getting valuable operational experience. Special thanks also the other emergency services we have worked with over the period, especially to MPS Richmond and our colleagues at our flank station, Chiswick RNLI’

The Teddington RNLI Twitter feed captures the intensity of this period for our Volunteer Helms, Crew, Shore Crew and Deputy Launching Authority (DLA)’s:

Thurs 5 April

Pager Alert 0845. We’ve just returned from a shout searching for a vulnerable person in the Richmond area with @ChiswickRNLI and @MPSRichmond - no one found & stood down by coastguard. That’s six shouts in five days for the crew!

Pager Alert 0157. Both lifeboats and @ChiswickRNLI tasked to assist @MPSRichmond in search for missing vulnerable person, with primary focus around Richmond Lock, Twickenham road and rail bridges & Isleworth. Crews stood down after an extensive search.

Wed 4 April

Pager Alert 0953. Boat reported adrift in Kingston area. Boat was located struggling to move in very strong flow, crew member was put aboard & boat towed to safety. Owners had seen it drifting, found it stuck on the bank, boarded it & tried to move away unsuccessfully.

Tues 3 April

Pager Alert 1715. To boat drifting in fast flows near Canbury Gardens - on arrival found 22’ boat with two adults and two children on board with broken engine - towed to a place of safety.

Pager Alert 0404. Person in water at Kingston. Crews were stood down prior to launch after person self-recovered.

Also just to reinforce the fact that the RNLI relies on the generous support of the public, we wanted to mention the kindness of our local Thames ferry, Hammertons, and local people as shown here.

Easter Monday 2 April

Huge thanks to our great friends at @Hammertonsferry for donating takings for a trip over the #Thames yesterday to @rnli via one of our crew who was a passenger & wearing an RNLI-branded jacket. Lovely gesture!

And Teddington RNLI make time for extra training too even during the Easter holidays.

Easter Saturday 31 March

Both boats were out training this morning - boat handling in strong streams including man over board drills (with buoy!), stemming & ferry gliding.

Good Friday 30 March

Pager Alert at 1015. Shout this morning was to @RichmondCanoeUK member capsized above weir - called in by lock keeper - happily had self-recovered when we arrived.

According to one of Teddington RNLI’s DLA’s Paul Roach:

‘This week, being Easter holidays also of course, has yet again tested all the skills, resources and training of our volunteer helms, crew, shore crew and our DLA team. In common with virtually all RNLI stations, we all have day jobs to do in addition to our roles at Teddington RNLI. And, of course, our volunteers leave partners, families, work colleagues and friends behind when they sprint off as the pager goes, so working for the RNLI needs the support and understanding of a lot of other people. So a big thanks to all those understanding people! Waking in the middle of the night to go to a shout can be demanding. Making sure we can operate the 24/7 service we provide is always a challenge. Like all RNLI Lifeboat Stations, we have full commitment and dedication from our volunteers to deliver our service. It’s what we all sign up for and we love helping to save lives and rescue people in emergency situations. The public support us in their financial contributions and we support them when they need us. We are particularly proud of our efforts in what has been a very busy few months since the start of 2018.

RNLI media contacts

• Paul Stallard, Teddington RNLI Press Officer, 07879 810 817 / [email protected]

• Paul Dunt, RNLI Media Officer London/South East Tel: (0207) 6207426Mob: (07785) 296252/ [email protected]

• For enquiries outside normal business hours, contact the RNLI duty press officer on 01202 336789

For the latest RNLI news, photos and videos, visit the RNLI News Centre

www.rnli.org

Key facts about the RNLI

The Royal National Lifeboat Institution is the charity that saves lives at sea. Our volunteers provide a 24-hour search and rescue service in the United Kingdom and Ireland from 238 lifeboat stations, including four along the River Thames and inland lifeboat stations at Loch Ness, Lough Derg, Enniskillen and Lough Ree. Additionally, the RNLI has more than 1,000 lifeguards on over 240 beaches around the UK and operates a specialist flood rescue team, which can respond anywhere across the UK and Ireland when inland flooding puts lives at risk.

The RNLI relies on public donations and legacies to maintain its rescue service. As a charity it is separate from, but works alongside, government-controlled and funded coastguard services. Since the RNLI was founded in 1824 our lifeboat crews and lifeguards have saved at least 140,000 lives. Volunteers make up 95% of the charity, including 4,600 volunteer lifeboat crew members and 3,000 volunteer shore crew. Additionally, tens of thousands of other dedicated volunteers raise funds and awareness, give safety advice, and help in our museums, shops and offices.

Learn more about the RNLI

For more information please visit the RNLI website or Facebook, Twitter 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 or by email.

The RNLI is a charity registered in England and Wales (209603) and Scotland (SC037736). Charity number 20003326 in the Republic of Ireland

Key facts about the RNLI

The Royal National Lifeboat Institution is the charity that saves lives at sea. Our volunteers provide a 24-hour search and rescue service in the United Kingdom and Ireland from 238 lifeboat stations, including four along the River Thames and inland lifeboat stations at Loch Ness, Lough Derg, Enniskillen and Lough Ree. Additionally the RNLI has more than 1,000 lifeguards on over 240 beaches around the UK and operates a specialist flood rescue team, which can respond anywhere across the UK and Ireland when inland flooding puts lives at risk.

The RNLI relies on public donations and legacies to maintain its rescue service. As a charity it is separate from, but works alongside, government-controlled and funded coastguard services. Since the RNLI was founded in 1824 our lifeboat crews and lifeguards have saved at least 140,000 lives. Volunteers make up 95% of the charity, including 4,600 volunteer lifeboat crew members and 3,000 volunteer shore crew. Additionally, tens of thousands of other dedicated volunteers raise funds and awareness, give safety advice, and help in our museums, shops and offices.

Learn more about the RNLI

For more information please visit the RNLI website or Facebook, Twitter 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 or by email.

The RNLI is a charity registered in England and Wales (209603) and Scotland (SC037736). Charity number 20003326 in the Republic of Ireland

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.