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Hunstanton RNLI volunteers in the swim on Christmas Day

Lifeboats News Release

A Norfolk lifeboat crew got in the swim for their town's annual Christmas Day dip.

RNLI/Chris Bishop

The Hunstanton RNLI team before the town's Christmas Day swim
Hundreds took part in the much-loved event, while thousands more turned out to cheer them on under cloudy skies from the beach and the Prom.
 
Fancy dress is part and parcel of the resort's off-beat celebration, which is believed to date back to the early 1970s.
 
So volunteers from the charity that saves lives at sea turned their hand to saving Christmas from The Grinch.
 
Dressed as characters from the film, they pursued the present-pincher into the icy-cold waters of The Wash.
 
But while crew members returned to the warm and dry before heading home to tuck into their turkey, their pagers remained at their side.
 
For like those at almost 250 lifeboat stations around the coast of the UK and Ireland, the Hunstanton crew are on call 24/7, 365 days a year - including 25 December.

Notes for editor

Hunstanton is one of the RNLI's busiest stations in Norfolk.
 
Thanks for the helpful coverage in 2023, which highlights the work of its amazing crew.
So far in 2023, its lifeboat and hovercraft have launched 27 times, with one life saved and 19 people aided.
The station is one of just four around the coastline of the UK and Ireland which operates a hovercraft.
Since Hunstanton's current station opened in 1979, its inshore lifeboat Spirit of West Norfolk and her predecessors have helped save 140 lives and render assistance to more than 600 people who found themselves in difficulty or in danger.
In 2003, she was joined by the hovercraft Hunstanton Flyer, which has since then been launched 250 times, saved 13 lives and assisted a further 150 people.
RNLI media contacts
For more information call Chris Bishop, Hunstanton RNLI volunteer Deputy Lifeboat Press Officer on 07584 147219 or Clare Hopps, RNLI Regional Communications Manager (North East and East) on: 07824 518641.
 
 

RNLI/Chris Bishop

The Christmas Day swim gets under way at Hunstanton

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.

Learn more about the RNLI

For more information please visit the RNLI website or Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. News releases, videos and photos are available on the News Centre.

Contacting the RNLI - public enquiries

Members of the public may contact the RNLI on 0300 300 9990 (UK) or 1800 991802 (Ireland) or by email.

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