A century of service at Redcar RNLI.

Tony Jamieson and Bob O'Neill both began volunteering for the RNLI in 1969. Tony joined the Teesmouth lifeboat station as a crew member before becoming second mechanic. He was part of the lifeboat crew involved in the fateful grounding in 1993 of the giant tanker Freja Svea, during which the Teesmouth lifeboat was badly damaged when it was struck by an enormous wave. Later on the same day the Hartlepool lifeboat was capsized in mountainous seas.

Tony later joined the Redcar lifeboat station in the mid-1990s as a sea safety adviser. During his time in this role, he has spoken to hundreds of boat owners and thousands of school children about the dangers of the sea.

Bob joined the Redcar lifeboat station as a crew member before becoming a launching vehicle driver. He is now a deputy launching authority, responsible for the tasking of the lifeboats to incidents. He is also heavily involved in the day-to-day running of the lifeboat station.

Mike Picknett, Lifeboat Operations Manager at Redcar, said: 'We are extremely privileged to have Bob and Tony here at Redcar. To complete 50 years of volunteering is outstanding. There's been a lifeboat at Redcar since 1802, so they have both been involved in almost a quarter of the history of lifesaving on this stretch of coast.

'If anyone was to ask me what we look for in our volunteers, I'd just point them in the direction of those two. Their commitment, enthusiasm and dedication are everything that's good about the RNLI.'

Tony and Bob have both received the RNLI's Excellence in Volunteering Award, and will be presented with their 50-year medals in 2020.

Ends

Notes to editors:

Attached image shows Tony Jamieson (left) and Bob O'Neill (right) who have both achieved 50 years volunteering with the RNLI. Credit RNLI/Dave Cocks. Also attached is an image of the Freja Svea aground at Redcar in February 1993. Credit Teesside Archives/Evening Gazette .

Redcar lifeboat station has been operating since 1802

Redcar currently operates a B-class lifeboat named Leicester Challenge III, paid for by the people of Leicester, and an IB1-class lifeboat named Eileen May Loach-Thomas, paid from the legacy of the late Mr Nick Thomas of Shropshire

For more news, information and images go to www.redcarlifeboat.org.uk. Find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/redcarrnli and follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/RedcarRNLI

Any images used should be credited RNLI/Redcar unless indicated

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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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