Calshot RNLI Responds To Boat On Fire
Whilst undertaking regular Sunday morning training, Calshot RNLI volunteer crew were tasked to a boat on fire near West Bramble.
Both of Calshot’s lifeboats, the Atlantic 85 B Class Max Walls and the smaller D Class David Radcliffe were training near Cowes when they were tasked.
Knowing the potential severity of a fire on the casualty vessel crew made best speed to the scene where they discovered five casualties as well as two dogs aboard the stricken vessel.
Having assessed that two of the casualties had been in the cabin when the fire had broken out and had taken on smoke, the crew began to evacuate the casualty vessel, assisted by crews from Hamble Independent Lifeboat who had deployed to the scene on hearing the radio communications.
Hamble took two casualties and the dogs to Swanwick, with the two that had been assessed as requiring further treatment being taken to Calshot Lifeboat Station where they were met by an ambulance crew along with the specialist HART team who assessed them for potential carbon monoxide poisoning, before being discharged and then given a lift back to Swanwick by Calshot’s Lifeboat Operations Manager, Mike Atwell. The remaining casualty remained aboard the casualty vessel as it was towed back to Swanwick by Sea Start.
For trainee boat crew member James Johnston, or JJ as he is known on station this marked his first shout afloat. Of the experience JJ said ‘It was brilliant to be part of the crew on this shout. The training scenarios that we’ve been through meant that I knew what was expected and was pleased to be able to contribute to a positive outcome.’
On the shout Mike Atwell added: ‘A fire at sea has potential to rapidly become a catastrophic incident, and it is a testament to the skills of our volunteer crew that they reached the scene rapidly. Upon arriving on scene, they quickly triaged the highest risk casualties and created an action plan to ensure that they received the best level of care in the shortest time. It is a testament to the high standards of training provided by the RNLI that our crew were able to handle such a dynamic and challenging situation.’
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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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