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16th November 2021 - Bill Fitzpatrick The RNLI President Alistair Pate welcomed a good turnout to hear a talk from Bill Fitzpatrick on The RNLI. Bill is from Ayrshire and is a keen sailor with a long interest in the work of the RNLI. Firstly Bill gave us a brief history of the Royal National Lifeboat Institute. It was founded in 1824 through the efforts of Sir William Hillary from the Isle of Man, initially as a National Institution for the Preservation of Life from Shipwreck before becoming the RNLI in 1854. Although motor lifeboats were were introduced by the RNLI in 1915, the last rowed lifeboat was retired as recently as 1957. Apart from a few full-time Coxswains and Mechanics the crews of the 400+ fleet of RNLI lifeboats are volunteers. Bill then talked about the lifeboats of the Clyde, and gave details of the different types of boats that are used round the Firth and the type of rescue work they can be involved in. He explained that these cover the full range of RNLI boat types from small inflatable inshore boats to the most modern all-weather lifeboats such as the Shannon class which is propelled by water jet instead of propellors. He finally covered other areas of the RNLI’s work across the country. They have 4 rescue hovercraft stationed in areas where waters can be too shallow for boats to operate, such as tidal mudflats. There are inland lifeboat stations, one on Loch Ness and 2 on the River Thames in London. The RNLI also provide beach lifeguards at beaches around the UK, as well as a Flood Rescue team which has responded to emergencies across the country as well as overseas. The next meeting, which is an Open Day, is on 7th December 2021, when Pupils from Biggar High School will present a Young Person’ Forum. |