Therese has today written to the Chief Executive of the RNLI, Mark Dowie, expressing her concern about their review of the town’s lifeboat station and requesting an urgent meeting to discuss the situation.
Therese has been informed that the RNLI is in the process of reviewing the possibility of replacing the all-weather Mersey-class lifeboat with an inshore Atlantic-85 which would restrict the current capabilities of the station and its crew members.
Therese said: “There was a Life-Saving Review carried out in 2017 where it was concluded that the station required a new all-weather lifeboat. The consensus locally has been to opt for a Shannon-class lifeboat and two significant donations were previously received to cover the cost of the boat as well as launching equipment. Not only is it concerning that there appears to be little progress in considering this preferred option, there now seems to be a real risk of a downgrade, which is not acceptable.”
“Instead, I want the Chief Executive to proactively engage on this matter as there is clearly local appetite to be part of the solution rather than opting for a far less capable lifeboat.”
