First-time Dad responds to lifeboat call-out just hours after son’s birth
Martyn Bibb, a volunteer lifeboat crew member for the RNLI (Royal National Lifeboat Institution) in Blackpool, answered the call to help others just two hours after the birth of his first child.
Martyn’s wife Ann gave birth to their first son, Harry, at 10pm on Thursday 6 June. Two hours later, having just settled his wife and son on the ward, Martyn’s pager sounded and he joined fellow Blackpool RNLI volunteer crew in responding to an emergency call.
Martyn said, ‘Meeting Harry for the first time was the most incredible and overwhelming experience I’ve ever had; he is perfect. As midnight approached, Ann and Harry were settled on the ward and I was starting to think about heading home for a couple of hours’ rest but my pager went off instead.
‘I was feeling a bit stunned by the experience of becoming a new dad – so the pager sound was actually quite helpful and reassuring. Thanks to my training, I know exactly how to respond to that sound and heading out on the lifeboat brought me back down to earth.
‘All RNLI volunteer crew members carry a pager 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year and when the pager goes off, the training kicks in. We drop what we’re doing and respond.’
Martyn has been a volunteer with Blackpool RNLI since last year, and joined the lifeboat crew just a couple of months ago.
On Sunday, Martyn was able to celebrate his first Father’s Day with Ann and Harry without the pager sounding.
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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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