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Newquay Lifeboat Station

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Coordinates: 50°24′59″N 05°05′14″W / 50.41639°N 5.08722°W / 50.41639; -5.08722
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This article is about the lifeboat station in Cornwall. For the lifeboat station in Wales, see New Quay Lifeboat Station.
Newquay Lifeboat Station
Newquay Lifeboat Station is located in Cornwall
Newquay Lifeboat Station
Newquay on the north coast of Cornwall
General information
TypeLifeboat station
LocationNewquay
AddressNewquay Harbour, South Quay Hill, Newquay, TR7 1HR
CountryUnited Kingdom
Coordinates50°24′59″N 05°05′14″W / 50.41639°N 5.08722°W / 50.41639; -5.08722
Opened1994; 30 years ago (1994)
OwnerRNLI
Website
rnli.org/find-my-nearest/lifeboat-stations/newquay-lifeboat-station
Listed Building – Grade II
FeatureOld lifeboat house and slipway (Towan Head)
Designated11 May 1988
Reference no.1312227

Newquay Lifeboat Station is the base for Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) search and rescue operations at Newquay, Cornwall, in the United Kingdom. It operates two lifeboats, Atlantic 85 The Gladys Mildred (B-821) and D-class (IB1) Enid Mary (D-773).

History

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A 'new kaye' was authorised in 1439 to provide a safe harbour during bad weather on the north coast of Cornwall. The harbour was improved in 1836, resulting in the two main piers that encircle it today.[1] During the 1850s, three silver medals were awarded to people rescuing people from shipwrecks near Newquay.[2] A lifeboat house was built on Fore Street in 1860, the lifeboat being taken down the street to the beach when it was needed.[3]

Former boat house at Towan Head

A slipway was built at Towan Head in 1895[2] with an inclination of 1 in 2.5 (40%), one of the steepest slipways in the country.[3] A lifeboat station was also built on Towan Head in 1899 which enabled the lifeboat to be launched directly into the water.[3]

It was suggested in 1897 that Newquay should be provided with a steam-powered lifeboat, however it was decided that Padstow was the only Cornish lifeboat station that was suitable.[4]

The station was closed in 1934, by which time motor lifeboats at other stations could provide better coverage than the "pulling and sailing" lifeboat at Newquay powered by oars or sails. The station was reopened in 1940 to house a motor lifeboat during World War II, but closed permanently in 1945, after which the building was used by the local council.[3]

The RNLI started to station inshore lifeboats (ILBs) around Cornwall from 1964. These could provide quicker rescues for the increasing number of leisure craft that were being used.[5] A new lifeboat station opened on the harbour side at Newquay in June 1965. This housed a D-class ILB. In 1994 a larger station was built on the same site with space for a second ILB, a larger Atlantic 75-class which could reach casualties further from Newquay.[3]

Awards

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Members of the lifeboat crew were awarded RNLI silver and bronze medals for a meritorious rescue of the SS Osten which ran aground in a storm on 17 December 1917.[2]

Members of Newquay's ILB crews have been recognised for their bravery several times. One received their "Thanks inscribed on vellum" in 1973. Other crew members were given the same in 1997, 2000 and 2010. Several crew members have also received a framed letter of thanks from the RNLI's chairman.[2]

Lifeboats

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  • James Stevens No. 5 (1899–1917)
    James Stevens No. 5 (1899–1917)
  • B-821 Gladys Mildred (from 2007)
    B-821 Gladys Mildred (from 2007)

At Towan Head

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ON is the Official Number used in RNLI records from 1884.

At Newquay ON Name Built Class Comments
1860–1865 Joshua 1860 Peake [6]
1865–1873 Joshua 1865 Self-Righter [6]
1873–1892 210 Pendock Neale 1865 Self-Righter Originally built in 1865 for Kingsdown Lifeboat Station and named Sabrina which was changed to James and Elizabeth before becoming Pendock Neale.[7]
1892–1899 331 Willie Rogers 1892 Self-Righter Operated at Hope Cove in south Devon from 1900 until 1903.[8]
1899–1917 426 James Stevens No. 5 1899 Self-Righter Wrecked when launched for a service on 17 December 1917.[2] The remains were found submerged near the Towan Head slipway in 2004.[9]
1917–1920 453 John William Dudley 1900 Self-Righter Served at Rye Harbour, Sussex, until 1916. After its time at Newquay it worked at North Berwick in Scotland until 1923. Sold in 1926 and used s a yacht.[10]
1920–1934 509 Admiral Sir George Black 1903 Self-Righter Had been stationed at The Lizard on the south coast of Cornwall until 1918. Sold in 1936 and used as a yacht.[11]
1940–1945 794 Richard Silver Oliver 1937 Liverpool A motor lifeboat initially stationed at Cullercoats.[12] After service at Newquay it moved up the coast to Ilfracombe and then to Criccieth in Wales where it remained until 1961.[13]

Inshore lifeboats

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Op. No. is the Operational Number shown on the boat.

At Newquay Op. No. Name Class Type New Comments
1965–1967 D-55 (no name) D RFD PB16 1965 [14]
1967–1968 D-110 (no name) D RFD PB16 1967 [14]
1969–1979 D-171 (no name) D RFD PB16 1969 [14]
1979–1980 D-192 (no name) D RFD PB16 1971 Stationed at Abersoch from 1971.[14]
1980–1984 D-278 (no name) D Zodiac III 1980 [15]
1984–1994 C-511 (no name) C Zodiac IV 1984 Initially carried number D-511.[16]
1994–1996 D-406 Phyl Clare D EA16 1990 First deployed in the relief fleet from 1990.[17]
1995 B-539 Lions International District 105 SE B Atlantic 21 1978 First stationed at Brighton in 1978.[18]
1995–2007 B-715 Phyllis B Atlantic 75 1995 [19]
1996–2005 D-497 Lord Daresbury D EA16 1996 [17]
2005–2014 D-636 Valerie Wilson D IB1 2005 [20]
2007 B-717 Daisy Aitken B Atlantic 75 1995 Stationed at Lough Swilly from 1995.[19]
2007– B-821 Gladys Mildred B Atlantic 85 2007 [21]
2014– D-773 Enid Mary D IB1 2014 [20]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Roddis, Roland (1951). Cornish Harbours. Christopher Johnson. p. 126.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Newquay station history". RNLI. Archived from the original on 1 February 2024. Retrieved 13 January 2024.
  3. ^ a b c d e Leach, Nicholas (2006). Cornwall's Lifeboat Heritage (2nd ed.). Twelveheads Press. p. 46.
  4. ^ Leach, Nicholas (2012). Padstow Lifeboats. The History Press. pp. 32–33. ISBN 978-0-7524-6540-1.
  5. ^ Leach 2006, pp. 28–30.
  6. ^ a b Leonard, Richie; Denton, Tony (2021). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Handbook 2021. Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society. pp. 2–18.
  7. ^ Leonard, Richie; Denton, Tony (2024). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Handbook 2024. Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society. pp. 10–11.
  8. ^ Leonard & Denton 2024, pp. 14–15.
  9. ^ Leonard & Denton 2024, pp. 18–19.
  10. ^ Leonard & Denton 2024, pp. 20–21.
  11. ^ Leonard & Denton 2024, pp. 22–23.
  12. ^ "Station remembers the loss of RNLB Richard Silver Oliver". RNLI. Archived from the original on 16 December 2023. Retrieved 24 January 2024.
  13. ^ Leonard & Denton 2024, pp. 34–35.
  14. ^ a b c d Leonard & Denton 2024, pp. 73–75.
  15. ^ Leonard & Denton 2024, p. 77.
  16. ^ Leonard & Denton 2024, p. 88.
  17. ^ a b Leonard & Denton 2024, pp. 79–80.
  18. ^ Leonard & Denton 2024, p. 66.
  19. ^ a b Leonard & Denton 2024, p. 68.
  20. ^ a b Leonard & Denton 2024, pp. 83–85.
  21. ^ Leonard & Denton 2024, p. 70.
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