Blyth Lifeboat Station
Blyth Lifeboat Station is located in Northumberland
Blyth Lifeboat Station
Blyth, Northumberland
General information
TypeRNLI Lifeboat Station
LocationBlyth Lifeboat Station, Quayside, South Harbour, Blyth, Northumberland, UK
CountryUK
Coordinates55°07′32″N 1°29′53″W / 55.125491°N 1.497928°W / 55.125491; -1.497928
Opened1808
OwnerRoyal National Lifeboat Institution

Blyth Lifeboat Station is operated by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution and currently operates a D Class (IB1) D-746 Alan and Amy.[1]

In 2007 the inshore lifeboat was launched on service 22 times, 11 people were rescued and £31,800 worth of craft were recovered.

History

A lifeboat had first been based at Blyth in 1808, privately sponsored by Sir Matthew Ridley. This boat was wrecked on service in 1810 and was not replaced. In 1826 the Port of Newcastle Shipwreck Association funded a new Blyth lifeboat and in 1866 the RNLI took over the running of the station. In 1920, for the station's first motor lifeboat, the RNLI built a new boathouse and slipway which, with modifications over the years, is still in use for the "D" class inflatable today. The various motor lifeboats over the years were slipway launched until October 1982 when a Waveney-class fast afloat boat was allocated to the station. The Waveney served until replaced by a new 25-knot Trent-class boat in December 1995 (in fact, unusually, all of Blyth's motor lifeboats had been built new for the station). However, a review of lifeboat provision in the North East led to the decision to withdraw the all-weather lifeboat from Blyth, and the station became inshore only on 16 July 2004. Inevitably, decisions to close or downgrade stations often lead to local concerns and following the RNLI's decision the Blyth Volunteer Lifeboat Service was set up and purchased a 38-foot-6-inch Lochin lifeboat which had been built in 1990 for the Caister Volunteer Rescue Service (a body similarly set up after withdrawal of an RNLI all-weather boat). The boat, named Spirit of Blyth and Wansbeck, went into service in 2005.

In 2023 the station's own crew had to be rescued when three members of crew were washed overboard from their D-class_lifeboat_(IB1) while performing a search.[2] The crew activated their Emergency_position-indicating_radiobeacon and fired a distress flare and were safely recovered. Their boat was rescued by Tynemouth Lifeboat.

Fleet

All-weather boats

ON[lower-alpha 1] Op. No.[lower-alpha 2] Name In service [3] Class Launches/
Saved		 Comments
ON 4 Dalmer
 1886–1901
ON 250 Oswald, Sarah & Jane
(Blyth No.2)		 1889–1900
ON 447 John Anthony
(Blyth No.2)		 1900–1927
ON 501 Dash 1902–1921
ON 654 Joseph Adlam 1921–1948 45ft Watson-class 82/74
ON 853 Winston Churchill
(Civil Service No.8)		 1948–1979 46ft 9in Watson-class 68/39
ON 1054 37-36 Shoreline 1979–1982 Rother-class 9/1
ON 1079 44-022 The William and Jane 1982–1995 Waveney-class 136/43 Last Waveney built
ON 1204 14-06 Windsor Runner
(Civil Service No.42)		 1995–2004 Trent-class 95/15

Inshore lifeboat

Op. No. Name In service [3] Class Comments
D-51 unnamed 1965 D-class (RFD PB16)
D-53 unnamed 1966–1973 D-class (RFD PB16)
D-210 unnamed 1973–1986 D-class (Zodiac III)
D-324 BBC Radio Newcastle II 1987–1994 D-class (EA16) One of two boats funded by the Lifesaver Appeal on BBC Radio Newcastle in 1986[4]
D-464 Wren 1994–2003 D-class (EA16)
D-606 Jennie B 2003–2012 D-class (IB1)
D-746 Alan and Amy[1] 2012– D-class (IB1)
  1. ↑ ON is the RNLI's Official Number of the boat.
  2. ↑ Op. No. is the RNLI's Operational Number of the boat carried on the hull.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "Blyth RNLI lifeboat dedicated to volunteer's parents". RNLI. Retrieved 13 February 2012.
  2. ↑ "Lifeboat crew swept overboard during mission". BBC News. 16 October 2023. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
  3. 1 2 Leonard, Richie; Denton, Tony (2023). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Handbook 2023. Lifeboats Enthusiasts Society.
  4. ↑ "Ceremonies". RNLI.
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