RNLI Rye Harbour takes Route 66 to success
The Chinese consider the number 6 to be important; its presence means that everything is going smoothly.
RNLI Rye Harbour volunteers would certainly concur as 66 was the number of completed modules assessed and passed by Dave Needham, DAT, (Divisional Assessor Trainer) over the last three days.
This is an amazing achievement, especially at the moment because of the pandemic, which has for months paused everything at the boathouse but responding to emergencies. It is only in the last few weeks that limited training had resumed. It is inspiring to realize how many long hours of dedicated homework have gone into 66 modules all getting the thumbs up.
Luke Bishop, LTC (Lifeboat Training Co-ordinator) had organized a full rota of training and assessing with Dave, mindful of Covid restrictions and not having too many crew at the station at any one time. These assessment days need full co-operation from all in the team to enable the boat to function: launching authorities, tractor drivers and shore crew members all play their part and John Rogers, tractor driver, also provided and crewed his own boat to enable the towing modules to take place.
Congratulations go to all who took part including Natalie Arter, who passed out as full boat crew; Paul Lancashire for completing his shore plan and passing out as full shore crew; Stuart Clark who completed his helm plan and then went on to pass his mock-helm assessment: one more step towards becoming a helm. Tia Bolton surpassed herself and passed 14 modules over the three days. Luke Bishop, Rob Jennings, Lucy Green, Izzy Bolton, Izzy Sharpe, Liss Matthews, Jim Howdle, Maddie Wright, Charlotte Keen, Joe Plant and Iain Cebunka all gained multiple passes.
Natalie Arter said as she stepped off the boat, ‘I was so pleased to hear from Dave that I had passed my modules and was now fully qualified as boat crew. I couldn’t have done it without the amazing support and encouragement from the team at Rye Harbour and my family. It is such a great feeling.’
To sum up the day Luke Bishop commented, ‘Despite the recent training restrictions it was great to see that so many crew had studied away from the station in their own time and successfully completed so many modules. It is a great team to be part of and I know the LOM (Lifeboat Operation Manager) Paul Bolton is proud of us all.’
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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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