Ilfracombe RNLI station launches £12,000 appeal for new inshore lifeboat

Ilfracombe RNLI’s current D class inshore lifeboat, the Deborah Brown II arrived at the station in November 2009. Since then it has been launched 356 times, aided 251 people and saved 15 lives. Having served the station for more than 10 years, it is now reaching the end of its operational life.

‘The Deborah Brown II has been an incredible lifeboat’, says Chris Wallis, volunteer Lifeboat Operations Manager at Ilfracombe RNLI Lifeboat Station.

‘The D class lifeboat is known as the workhorse of the RNLI and that’s certainly true here at Ilfracombe. Due to the steep cliffs and rocky coastline in our area, the D class is invaluable as it’s able to provide assistance to people in shallow waters close to the shore.

‘Many of our rescues also involve people using the water for leisure such as kayakers and surfers and it’s ideal for these situations as it’s able to launch quickly and is highly manoeuvrable,’ Chris added.

The appeal aims to raise £12,000 towards the £52,000 total cost of the lifeboat. The remaining funds have been raised by Paul Brown, who together with his sons and their friends and colleagues, have donated funds for the previous two inshore lifeboats at Ilfracombe, all of which have been named in memory of his wife Deborah who passed away in 1996. The new D class will be named the Deborah Brown III in her memory.

Working alongside the station’s Shannon class all-weather lifeboat The Barry and Peggy High Foundation, the two lifeboats will provide the very best search and rescue facilities around the Ilfracombe area from Woolacombe Bay to Foreland Point near Lynmouth.

RNLI Community Manager Ellie Walker said she is very hopeful that the local community in Ilfracombe and North Devon will get behind the appeal:

‘The RNLI lifeboat station at Ilfracombe is a busy station, what many people don’t realise is that both lifeboats at the station are crewed and supported by volunteers, people who live and work among them in the Ilfracombe area. They go about their lives carrying pagers, ready to drop everything at a moment’s notice to head out to sea and help people in distress.

‘They never know when the pager will go off, or what situation they will be called to, they selflessly respond whenever the call comes in with the aim to save every one they can.

‘The volunteers and crew of Ilfracombe RNLI need your support and we’re reaching out to the community to help us raise the £12,000 funds to replace the D-Class. Every pound that’s raised or donated towards the new lifeboat is a lifesaver.’

Karen Ozelton, Chair of Fundraising at Ilfracombe RNLI adds: ‘If anyone is interested in making a donation or arranging a fundraising event to support the appeal we would be delighted. The appeal fundraising team can be contacted by email on [email protected], or by calling the lifeboat station on 01271 863771. Donations can be sent to the lifeboat station or made by going to our GoFundMe donations page and searching for RNLI Ilfracombe.

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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