Lymington helm leaves his own 40th birthday party to answer pager

The Lymington RNLI voluntary crew were swift to respond, launching David Bradley, their Atlantic 85 class inshore lifeboat at 7.12pm, under the command of Simon Nuding. The weather conditions were good with good visibility and on a falling tide. The lifeboat proceeded out of the Lymington river and headed east towards Newtown Creek on the Isle of Wight, where they reported a 7-metre motor boat was aground.

The lifeboat quickly reached the vessel which had 2 casualties on board and discovered the motor boat was aground on "the wall" inside Newtown Creek, whilst still at anchor. The vessel was not high-and-dry as initially thought.

The helm assessed the situation and reassured the people on board the motor boat. Two crew members were placed aboard the motor boat whilst another lifeboat crew member entered the water to assist by pushing, once the grounded vessel was floating. Given the tide was falling it was critical to re-float the vessel as soon as possible.

The vessel quickly re-floated and was able to make its own way back to Lymington under their own power, escorted by the Lymington lifeboat. The lifeboat proceeded back to the station where the shore crew were waiting and prepared the lifeboat ready for service again at 8.03pm.

Our voluntary crew are always on call 24/7. When the lifeboat pagers went off at 7.05pm, the helm Simon Nuding was starting to celebrate his 40th birthday party, but dropped everything in order to support the lifeboat launching. Simon was able to rejoin his family and friends quickly after the lifeboat reached the station. Thank you to all our crew members who give up so much time to save lives at sea.

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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