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Newly qualified mechanics provide cover for Kirkwall RNLI lifeboat
Two volunteer boat crew have both passed their mechanics assessment, in the last few months, to provide vital cover on the Kirkwall RNLI lifeboat, RNLB Margaret Foster.
PJ McGrath and Graeme Spence were assessed by RNLI trainer, Evan Gallacher. They join some of their fellow boat crew who have previously passed their mechanic training.
PJ joined the volunteer boat crew at Kirkwall in 2017, inspired by a friend of his father, Mick Hoyle, who was volunteer crew at Redcar RNLI Lifeboat Station. As a boy, PJ would go out fishing with his dad and Mick, trips that would also give PJ his love of working on boats.
PJ also gained a skilled trade in plumbing before working on multicats around the world and latterly working his way up to mate on the local Harbour tugs; a family tragedy having brought him home to Orkney.
Graeme also has a skilled manual trade in joinery and runs his own business. He joined the volunteer boat crew in 2023 because he wanted to give something back to the community. However, despite being busy with his own business and being a dad, he also felt that he could lend his practical skills, like PJ, in taking on a cover mechanics role.
To be assessed as mechanics, PJ and Graeme would have been supported by their fellow crew while learning and being assessed on how to deal with flooded compartments, fire on board, electrical and mechanical failures and machinery breakdowns.
PJ said: ‘I had always admired the lifeboat. As a young lad I went out fishing out of Bridlington with my dad and a lifeboat man, that stuck with me. Many years later I was involved in a coordinated coastguard search whilst at the creels and that spiked my interest again.'I was lucky when I applied because crew were needed at the time. I love the camaraderie, the sense of belonging to something, being part of something who's collective is greater than the sum of its parts.’
Notes to Editor
Multicat vessels are versatile, multi-purpose workboats, that feature a wide, flat pontoon hull, a shallow draft, and heavy-duty deck equipment. They are primarily used for anchor handling, dredging support, towing, and offshore construction, like offshore renewables and cable laying.
RNLI Media Contacts
For further information, please contact:
Erica Niven, Volunteer Lifeboat Press Officer for RNLI Kirkwall, [email protected]
Richard Smith, RNLI Regional Communications Manager for Scotland, 07826 900639, [email protected]
Martin Macnamara, RNLI Regional Communications Lead for Scotland, 07920 365929, [email protected]
RNLI Press Office, 01202 336789, [email protected]
Key facts about the RNLI
The RNLI is the charity that 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 146,700 lives.
Learn more about the RNLI
For more information please visit the RNLI website or Facebook, TikTok 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.