Thurso RNLI volunteer crew member receives 20 year medal.
John Thurso, Lord Lieutenant of Caithness, presented Thurso RNLI volunteer crew member Scott Farquhar with the RNLI 20 year service medal.
The presentation took place in the lifeboat station at Scrabster and fellow volunteer crew members and some of Scott’s family were present.
John Thurso said: ‘Scott was brought up in the RNLI as the Farquhar family is, of course, very well known for their dedication and commitment to the RNLI. As Her Majesty the Queen's representative in the County it gives me great pleasure to attend this type of event, especially when it's for such an essential, lifesaving, voluntary service that the general public value and support so well’.
Scott said: 'I have always been involved in the RNLI since a very young age and spent many a day with my brothers and late father at the old and new Lifeboat station's in Scrabster'.
Scott’s father Billy joined the RNLI in 1969 and served for 45 years. His first shout was the Longhope lifeboat disaster when the Thurso lifeboat recovered the upturned Longhope lifeboat and towed it back to Scrabster.
In 1999, Billy was awarded the Bronze medal for heroism when, as coxswain, he and his crew prevented the burning chemical tanker Ascania from crashing into the Caithness coast. As a precaution 500 members of the public were evacuated from their homes near Dunnet Head.
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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