The new Lytham St Annes Shannon Lifeboat Barbara Anne has arrived
Large crowd greets lifeboat as she reaches her station
The Sea Charity’s new £2.2 million Shannon lifeboat Barbara Anne arrived at Lytham St Annes on Sunday 25th February 2018 in front of hundreds of well wishers lining the promenade, many even walking out to the waters edge to greet the new state of the art lifeboat in the sunny but cold weather.
The new boat was met off the mouth of the river by the Lytham St Annes Station’s two lifeboats, the Mersey class Her Majesty the Queen and the D class MOAM as well as Blackpool Station’s Atlantic class lifeboat before beaching and being recovered onto her Launch & Recovery vehicle. Both All-weather lifeboats then set off in convoy to the Boathouse to be presented to the vast crowd.
Further training for the volunteer crew will continue for a number of weeks until the new boat takes over from the Station’s Mersey class All-weather (ALB) lifeboat Her Majesty the Queen which has looked after life saving in the Ribble Estuary and Irish Sea since her arrival in 1999. It is not known yet what will happen to the Her Majesty the Queen but the most likely scenario is that she will join the relief fleet of lifeboats for a short time before being sold by the charity.
Coxswain Gary Bird said, “The new lifeboat brings 21st century technology to the area. She is larger, faster, more manoeuvrable and safer than her predecessor and therefore has the potential to save more lives at sea”.
Chairman of the Shannon Appeal Committee Digby Moulden said, “I would like to thank all who have given to the Appeal to finance the Barbara Anne, either with donations or in their time and effort. All have helped to save lives at sea in the future. Thank you.”
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.
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