Busy holiday season is upon us
GREETINGS again from Holyhead Lifeboat Station. The holiday season is upon us, which is usually very busy for the RNLI, and we are no exception. This was evident over the last fortnight, when we were called out a number of times in short succession.
Two shouts were to tow vessels with engine failure, a third was to a lone sailor who had become ill on his yacht six miles out to sea then another shout to take over the tow of a fishing boat with a fouled propeller from Porthdinllaen RNLI.
As ever our dedicated crew of volunteers answered the call and all the vessels were brought to safety. The ill sailor job also involved the use of the HM Coastguard helicopter.
With all of this in mind, and as we are in a popular holiday spot, with many people sailing nearby, we would welcome anyone using our local waters into our station, to use our room aimed at raising awareness of the maritime hazards of the area.
There are very useful photographs and illustrations showing key danger areas and would be useful for locals as well as holidaymakers.
We are very fortunate to have a full complement of lifeboat crew at the moment, and our new coxswain Tony Price is delighted that young people from the town are showing such an interest and boosting our numbers. We are also regularly welcoming school parties to the station, which is helping to spread our sea safety campaign to Respect The Water. This year’s focus is safety advice for people who enter the sea unexpectedly and may suffer cold water shock.
The RNLI is advising people in this situation to ‘Fight your instincts, not the water’ and resist the urge to gasp and swim hard when first entering the water, but rather to float on their backs for 60-90 seconds until the effects of cold water shock pass. More details are available on the RNLI website at www. respectthewater.com.
Fundraising-wise, we have had a fantastic few months; as well as our successful Craig Steadman appeal, we had a fantastic turnout for our Car Wash Day over the Easter weekend (around 80 cars cleaned to perfection by our crew!) and just this weekend our annual visit to Cemaes Bay was also a great success. More events will take place over the summer; please look out on our social media pages for details (details below), as well as in the local press.
Our Facebook and Twitter accounts are both gaining followers every day, and we now have an Instagram page too. Please look for @HHeadLifeboat on Twitter; Holyhead Lifeboat Station -RNLI on Facebook, and holyhead_lifeboat on Instagram.