Another wet and windy weekend when there didn't seem much point in going sailing just for the fun of it. Fortunately the yacht club had arranged a visit to the Harwich lifeboat station.
The original idea was that we would go by boat (approx three miles), mooring on the RNLI quay. In the event, knowing what the scend would be like in Harwich Harbour in that weather, nobody fancied taking their boat to bump and grind against even such a privileged pontoon, so we went by road (approx 30 miles!)
But the trip was well worth the effort. Over the years our club (like most others, it has to be said) has raised many thousands of pounds for the RNLI, so we were greeted and treated like royalty, and allowed to explore all the nooks and crannies of not only the lifeboat station but also the two lifeboats, the inshore lifeboat (ILB) Sure and Steadfast (Atlantic 75) and the all-weather Severn class Albert Brown.
It's reassuring to know that, because this is one of the busiest commercial ports in Europe (Harwich harbour has Felixstowe, Britain's busiest container port, on the opposite bank) this “top of the range” lifeboat is also available to ensure the safety of the region's yachtsmen.
Of course, everybody hopes they will never see it up close in anger, which is one reason why it was so interesting to be given this inside view. Severn Class Lifeboats are apparently stationed at every ferry port - and are capable of picking up 200 survivors in the event of a major incident. It would be quite crowded!
But it was perhaps not surprising to learn that it is the ILB that does most of the work. It is more economical to run (Albert Brown's two huge Caterpillar diesels burn four gallons a mile!), requires only three crew, as opposed to five to seven for the big boat, and of course can be launched much more quickly, and reach the casualty faster (at 30 knots, instead of the mere 25 of the Severn!)
We were told that, from the time their pagers go off, the crew could have the ILB on the water and on the way within six minutes. In fact it was called out on a “shout” while we were there (a kitesurfer in trouble). Admittedly the crew members were already at the station, hosting our visit, but they were actually on the water and away in less than four minutes.
That included them getting all their kit on, and craning the boat out into the water. It was an impressive show. I know it would have taken me more than four minutes to struggle with the neck and wrist seals of the dry suit, never mind wellies, helmet, lifejacket and all the rest!
Fortunately, this time the effort was unnecessary - the kitesurfer was picked up by someone else before they reached the scene.
Harwich is a relatively unusual lifeboat station in that the 30 crew members (full-time coxswain and mechanic and 28 volunteers) are mostly professional seafarers, whereas in many stations around the coast, the decline of fishing fleets etc means that many volunteers have no maritime background and have to be trained from scratch.
Even so it was interesting to learn just what a heavy commitment the volunteers put in, in terms of training to keep their skills up to date, practice exercises and so on. And the over-riding message we all took away from the visit was of the enormous pride they all take in being part of the RNLI.
Both boats were in absolutely spotless, “as new” condition, despite the thousands of hours they have spent at sea, often in truly terrible conditions.
Of course, we asked the men why they do it, and what they think of leisure sailors who sometimes put lifeboat crews' lives at risk by taking less than sensible decisions about putting to sea in unsuitable conditions, but they were all too polite to make any complaints!
They weren't heroes, they insisted. They volunteered because they enjoyed it. The look on someone's face when they stepped aboard the lifeboat having been rescued was the only reward they wanted.
Well, I'm sorry, boys. I sincerely hope I'm never going to give you that satisfaction in person! But having seen the boats closely, I now have a much better appreciation of just what is involved in being an RNLI volunteer, and I'll go on paying my Offshore sub as well as joining in all the YC fund-raising efforts, even more willingly than before.
