
Whitstable RNLI launch to Motor Cruiser Aground at entrance to The Swale
A motor cruiser reported as aground on a sandbank in the eastern entrance to The Swale resulted in the launch of the Whitstable RNLI lifeboat on Thursday afternoon 20th June.
A crew member went ashore to check on the welfare of the occupant who confirmed he wished to remain onboard and await the next tide to refloat his craft. He was advised by the lifeboat crew to lay out an anchor.
The lifeboat was therefore released from the scene to return to station.
The motor cruiser refloated on the next tide and continued its passage without further assistance.
Weather conditions at the time were overcast skies, good visibility and a light force 1 breeze.
Notes to editors
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Whitstable RNLI Lifeboat Station was established in 1963 by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution and is one of 238 lifeboat stations around the shores of the UK and Ireland. The volunteer crews provide a maritime search and rescue service for the Kent coast. They cover the area between the Kingsferry Bridge on the Swale, in the west, around the south-eastern side of Sheppey and along the coast through Whitstable and Herne Bay to Reculver in the east and outwards into the Thames Estuary.
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The station is equipped with an Atlantic 85 lifeboat named Lewisco, purchased through a bequest of a Miss Lewis of London who passed away in 2006.
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She is what is known as a rigid inflatable inshore lifeboat, the boat’s rigid hull being topped by an inflatable sponson. She carries a crew of four people.
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RNLI media contacts
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Chris Davey, Volunteer Lifeboat Press Officer, Whitstable Lifeboat Station.
07741 012004/ [email protected] -
Julie Rainey - Regional Communications Lead : 07827 358256
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Hatti Mellor - Regional Communications Manager :07724 801305
For enquiries outside normal business hours, contact the RNLI duty press officer on 01202 336789
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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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.