Barrow RNLI Lifeboat called to assist search off Walney Island
Volunteer crew from the RNLI’s Barrow station launched their inshore lifeboat this afternoon, Saturday 19th May 2018, to assist in a search off Biggar Bank at Walney Island.
The call for assistance came from HM Coastguard at Holyhead at 3-17 pm. The information received was that a member of the public on the shore at Biggar Bank, on the west side of Walney Island, had reported seeing an object in the sea, and was concerned that it might be a person in difficulty in the water. The crew was paged and the inshore lifeboat, ‘Vision of Tamworth’, was launched at 3-30pm with Ben Jackson at the helm. The lifeboat proceeded at speed towards the scene and had reached the south end of Walney Island when the search was called off and the lifeboat stood down. Furness Coastguard had also attended the scene and established that the object in the water was not a person.
The ‘Vision of Tamworth’ then returned to the lifeboat station at 3-50 pm where it was made ready for the next launch.
The wind at the time of the incident was south-westerly, Force 1, and the high tide had passed shortly before the call-out at 3-10 pm with a predicted height of 9.2 metres.
With the current spell of good weather set to continue for the next few days the RNLI urges everyone visiting the coast to respect the water particularly as sea temperatures are still very low at this time of year.
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.